A Change of Heart
by MooseDeEvita
Summary: COMPLETE. AU. Instead of the Quarter Quell, Snow forces Katniss to marry Peeta as entertainment for the Capitol. This turns out to be just what Peeta and Katniss needed to finally act on their own feelings for each other. M for later sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is an Alternate Universe story, so please keep that in mind when reading. This is my first fanfic in many many years, so be kind. Constructive criticism always welcome. Haters gon hate haha

Chapter 1

The wedding dresses would be arriving any moment now. Try as I might, I couldn't suppress the deep sorrow inside my chest from bubbling to the surface at the thought of all those elegant dresses. This was not how this moment had ever played out in my mind. Being on the victory tour had given me a taste for beautiful gowns, and getting to play out being the pretty, desirable girl for a change had grown on me. I felt I should be giddy with excitement, getting to pick from what will most likely be the most beautiful dresses I've ever seen. Instead there was bitterness in my mouth as I thought of why the dresses were being sent to me so soon.

During the tour, Peeta had proposed to me in front of an adoring crowd as part of the plan to stop the rebellion. Snow had loved the response from the audience so much; felt they were all so convinced, that he demanded the wedding and marriage after be filmed for the people of the capitol's entertainment. It had been devastating news for me; I still was unsure which direction my heart wanted to go in, to be told that there was absolutely no other path than this forced marriage. The pain in Peeta's eyes when he found was enough to keep me from voicing anything other than joy at the upcoming wedding. As soon as we got back on the train and headed home Peeta had locked himself in his own room, and I haven't had a chance to talk to him alone since we arrived home.

There were flowers set up all over the living room; everyone was swirling around putting together sets for the photo shoot with the dresses. I sighed, playing with the petals of a rose on the table in front of me, tuning out all the noise of the crew of people sent over to make my home look perfect.

"Alright, they just arrived so let's get you into the first dress!" Cinna said, rushing into the room with several dress bags in his arms.

I brightened up as soon as I saw him, and curiosity took over as I eyed up the bags that held my future dress.

After posing in several dresses, each with different hair, make up and accessories, Cinna pulled out one last dress bag. He unzipped it slowly, and pulled out a cream colored dress. It had delicate lace on the bust over silk, and was slightly mermaid shaped flaring out at my knees slightly. Once on, it fit like a glove, the soft silk resting perfectly on the curves of my hourglass figure. A simple, small net came down from a pearl pin in my thick black hair, coming to rest just above my high cheekbones.

"I think we have a winner!" my mother said, coming to lean in the door way.

"Peeta will be beside himself when he sees you in this." Haymitch said as he looked me over.

The photographer pulled me into the center of the room, under an altar of pastel flowers.

"Try not to look so miserable" My mother threw in, placing a small bouquet of flowers into my hands before running her thumb over my cheek.

Raising my head high, I put on a big smile as the flash of the camera went off, over and over again. Playing the love-struck girl for so long had become second nature for me in front of the camera. Seeing all the hard work that had gone into this, the looks on my mother and sister's faces, it was all too much to take right now.

"We're done here, right?" I asked, ripping the veil off and tossing it on the table next to the rose.

With everyone watching, I ran up the stairs to my room and threw the dress off as if it burned my skin. As the dress floated to the ground, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror on the dresser. Soft black curls swirled around my shoulders and down to the small of my back, glitter covered my body and face and deep red lipstick stained my lips. It all looked so beautiful, and I wanted it gone from me as soon as possible.

The bathroom of my new house in the village was large, with a claw foot tub and stone walls. Even with the heater on, it felt cold and dark to me, somehow reminding me of the capitol. As the hot water poured into the tub, I climbed in, sucking in air as the heat hit my skin. It felt like hours went by as I floated in the water, watching all the bubbles disappear, before I finally climbed out.

After having to get in and out of all those dresses, the last thing I wanted was to put anything else restrictive on my body. I walked back into my room wrapped in a towel, letting my eyes fall on each thing in it. This would only be my room for a short while longer; as soon as the wedding was over we'd be moving in together. I've never even been able to go on a date, and now here I was, about to live with someone for life. Sleep next to them every night. Well, that part doesn't sound too bad. The only good night's sleep I've been able to get after the games was in Peeta's arms.

Peeta.

Warmth started in my stomach and spread out at the thought of lying in Peeta's strong arms. Feeling so safe, so loved.

Well this is as good a time as any to talk to him.

Throwing on a sweater and pants, I ran downstairs and leaped out the door. Apparently I'd been in the bath for quite some time; everything had been cleaned up and put back in order in the living room, not a loose flower petal to be found. It was almost as if no one had been there at all. A bit of guilt set in, thinking about how I ran out on everything including Cinna.

The wind continued blowing a strong hot breeze as I walked the short distance to Peeta's house. It looked identical on the outside from my house, but the faint smell of baking bread wafted out from a window. I walked over and peered inside the window. A pair of striking blue eyes followed my every move. They widened when he saw me looking back at him, his cheeks turning red. He quickly pulled the curtains shut, leaving me standing on the street alone with my thoughts.

With only a short period of time before our wedding, he couldn't hide from me forever.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Having been all but told by Peeta that he wasn't ready to talk to me, I decided to walk into town. Having more money than I know what to do with is a challenge I never expected to have to deal with in my life, so now that I have it I mostly feel like there's something I should be doing with my time that I haven't figured out yet. Most victors pick up hobbies, pretending for the audience that I like designing dresses was easy enough at the time but now that I'm on my own it's pointless.

There are some things that I know I need to clear up, most of it surrounding Gale. My feet move me forward toward the woods without even thinking about it, they know where I need to go.

A small part of the fence had snapped apart enough for me to slide through easily, and several birds chirped out to me from a tree above. I glanced up at them, two plump mockingjays staring right back at me from their perch in a low lying branch. If I still needed to hunt for food I could have easily shot both of them, but it felt strange now to consider mockingjays something to eat. It felt wrong even.

Keeping track of the broken twigs and impressions in the dirt it was easy to follow Gale's trail to a small meadow near the forest's edge overlooking a lake. I had come to this lake many times with my father. This would make it harder, talking to him while I felt the ghost of my father so close around me. Smoke was coming from the chimney of the small cement house at the water's edge, giving away Gale's location.

I hovered in the doorway, seeing the small fire glowing, wood cracking and snapping in the fire.

"I was beginning to wonder if you were ever coming back to me." Gale's voice came from right behind me.

I spun around to face Gale, who was standing only a few inches behind me. A sneaky smile spread across his face as he looked me over before scooping me up in his arms, spinning us around the small room. Gently setting me back on the ground, he placed his hands on my cheeks, pulling our foreheads to rest together.

"I kept trying to come and see you; it's just been so hectic getting ready for the wedding and everything." I said.

Gale's face hardened before he recovered, letting out a bitter laugh.

"Yeah, about that. We could still run away. Get as far away from here as possible, just me and you. No more playing pawn for the capitol. That is, if you wanted to." He said, staring into my eyes as if searching for an answer in them.

Oh no, this wasn't how I wanted this meet up to go.

"Gale, we can't run away now. They'll hunt me down; they won't stop until they find us."

He pulled back even further from me, his eyes hard. "So what, you're just going to go along with their game? You're just going to give up and… marry him?"

"I don't have a choice. At least I like Peeta and trust him; we went through so much together. If I have to marry anyone, I don't mind it being him." The words surprised me as they came out of my mouth.

A noise came from Gale's throat, somewhere between a growl and groan. The air around us seemed to be getting colder as we stood there staring each other down. I was scared to speak first, not sure what confession would slip out of my mouth next. _I wouldn't mind being married to Peeta. _That kept ringing in my head, and the more I thought about it the more I realized it was true.

"So that's it? You're making your choice right here? He asked

"Choice? What choice do I have? I just survived a game designed to kill me, I'm not ready to put myself back out there by running away and turning my back on everyone I love. Besides, I'm only getting married. You'll still be my best friend."

I thought my words would placate Gale, but they seemed to have the opposite effect.

"I don't want to just be your best friend." He reached out for me before changing his mind and dropping his arm at his side. He stared past me for a minute before locking eyes with mine.

"What are you trying to say?" I had a sick feeling in my stomach. This meet up was not going in any direction I'd planned it to.

"I'm trying to tell you how I feel about you. When you volunteered, I realized my feelings. I hated sitting back here waiting to find out what horrible things would happen to you at the games. And then, watching you… with him. It killed me a little inside. That should have been me, kissing you."

I thought his words over for a minute. After all those years hunting together in the woods each day, I had never once thought he had any feelings for me other than friendship. If anything I'd considered his affection to be big brother like, protective the way kin takes care of one another.

"Catnip?" He reached for me, frowning as I pull away.

"No. I'm sorry, but no. Maybe, in a different life, it would be me and you. Maybe we could have run away together, lived out in the woods together and grown old together. But I won the Hunger Games. The things that I went through there… I can't ever explain those feelings and experience with anyone. The only person who can truly understand that part of me is Peeta; he'll always be the only one. What happened there was more real and natural than anything else ever has been in my life. I didn't come here to hurt you."

The silence hanging in the air was too much to take.

"Gale…" I finally said, barely above a whisper.

The expression on his face was hard to read.

"I don't know if I can be just friends with you. You aren't the girl I hunted with in the woods anymore. When I saw you twirling around and giggling on stage, I thought you were just playing the game. Now I see, they changed you. You aren't the girl I fell for at all." His eyes had grown cold.

I realized that for the first time that I wasn't welcome here with him. The cabin felt tiny, his large frame taking up too much space, as if there was no room for me at all. This place was supposed to be a safe place, a secret between and my father that I had let him in on. Instead, I was the one who felt like I didn't belong here.

Somewhere outside, a bird began singing. Several more joined in, and soon there was a chorus of birds singing. They were calling me outside, into the sunshine and away from this hostile moment.

"For what it's worth, I really am sorry Gale. You mean so much to me; I just can't be the person you want me to be for you." I rushed out, making sure to be almost to the fence into the district before I allowed one tear to roll down my face.

Now that I didn't have Gale to lean on and confide in, who did I have? Prim was too young, too innocent still to understand what I had gone through, and still going through. My mother just couldn't carry any more weight on her chest. Where do I go, who's shoulder can I lean on?

The name floated quietly on the air like a whisper. _Peeta. _


	3. Chapter 3

AN: I very much appreciate those of you who took the time to review my story, it really motivated me to keep writing.

Chapter 3

The days before our wedding came and went far too fast for my liking. I had been so busy being forced to go over menus and deciding what should be served for our reception, talking to the florists about decorations and getting everything ready for the wedding. I hadn't had a moment to myself, let alone a chance to talk to Peeta other than when we were surrounded by people.

Now it was the day before our wedding ceremony, and my nerves were trying to get the best of me. Birds singing outside my window woke me early, I could tell by how low the sun hung in the sky just above the line of trees.

I lay there, watching the light fill my room as the sun slowly rose in the sky higher and higher.

My nightmares had been getting worse and worse each night since returning from the games. Most nights I woke up at least once covered in a cold sweat, my body tight and poised to fight, though of course I was all alone in the dark with only my mind to fight.

Last night I went through my same routine, double checking that both the front and back door were locked before heading to my room with some sleep time tea to force myself to fall asleep. I built up a wall of blankets on the side of me that was exposed to the room, and buried myself between it and the wall, mentally preparing myself for a bad night's sleep and the nightmares to come.

Instead the dream that came to me was very different. I woke up still feeling the places where his arms had wrapped around my body; I could almost smell his warm skin. There were goosebumps on my arm; I rubbed my hand over the spot where I had dreamed his own hand to have rested. With a sigh, I stretched and rolled out of bed.

Turning the water on to just slightly above ice cold, I climbed into the shower. As the water spread across my skin, a stronger memory of the dream I had had came into my mind.

Strong hands moved across my shoulders, down my arms and then back up to the base of my neck. Lips coming to replace those hands.

"Katniss, are you almost ready? Prim and I have everything to start packing." My mother's voice wafted through the bathroom door, bringing me back to the real world.

That dream though, I wanted to remember more of it! I quickly rinsed off and rushed out of the shower, carelessly throwing a towel around myself. Prim and my mom were waiting in my room, a box and a shoulder bag out on the bed in front of them. Prim looked excited, chattering away as soon as she saw me.

"Oh Katniss, this is so exciting!" She hopped over with a huge grin on her face.

My mother pursed her lips; there was a tightness near her eyes. "Give her a chance to get dressed Primrose."

"I picked out something nice for you to wear when you go over to Peeta's house today." She said, smoothing a wrinkle out of a red dress on the bed. There were tiny yellow flowers on the dress, giving it the illusion of blossoms from a tree falling slowly to the ground in spring.

"It's not too fancy to wear when I'm just moving my stuff over to his house?" I ask, slipping into it.

I spun around several times in front of the mirror enjoying the way the bottom spread around and then clung to my hips when I stood still suddenly.

"I don't really know what's appropriate to wear for this situation." My mother sighed, looking me over. "You look so beautiful, even in the most simple of things. You look so much like your father, and yet you are so completely your own person. "Her voice wobbled slightly as she said this.

Her cold fingers pulled my hair from my face, beginning to braid my wet hair to keep it from hanging on the dress.

"I know we have one more day with you, but it just feels like goodbye already." Prim said, playing with my fingers.

"Hey now, I'm moving 3 houses away. It's not like I won't be here bothering you every day as if I still lived here. At least we get to keep this house so you can stay here instead of moving back into the Seam." I try and give them a big smile as the words leave my mouth. We all look at each other for a moment, both my mother and Prim's eyes so light compared to my gray ones.

"Come on, let's get started on packing." My mother pulls us all apart.

It's strange seeing everything that I own packed back up after such a short time living in this house. I have left almost everything for Prim and my mother to use for themselves. All the dresses from interviews and appearances are shoved into a box, probably ruining them but I can't see much of a chance in the future to wear a dress that's already been seen by everyone in Panem. I'm sure Cinna wouldn't allow it even if I tried to repeat an outfit.

I stuff the few personal items I have in the bag, some clothes I used to wear hunting, my father's jacket, and a few of the soaps from the bathroom just because I can. Once they are packed and sealed up I just let the box and bag sit there on the bed, not ready to acknowledge what all of this leads to. Acknowledging that me moving my things from my house to Peeta's means I also have to acknowledge our wedding being the next day.

Something flickers in my chest, a little feeling that seems to happen lately when I think of Peeta. I wonder if he's sitting in his house right now, taking in the time he has left in his house alone before I come over. What is going through his head as he waits for me?

I wished so much to talk to him these past few weeks, I hated going into our marriage this way. The only comfort was the fact that after tomorrow, one way or another he'd have to talk to me since we'd be in the same house. It certainly wasn't big enough for him to disappear completely from me.

"You should probably head over soon Katniss, I want you home early so we can have dinner together." My mother smiled kindly at me, and I knew she was thinking silently that it would be our last dinner as a family in this house.

"I've got this, don't worry. I'll be home in plenty of time to eat with you both." I said, swinging the bag over my shoulder and picking up the box from Prim's hands.

We stood looking at each other one more minute until the box slipped in my hands, and I stepped out from our front door into the humid summer air.

The walk to Peeta's house was so short, it was over before I knew it. The mountains just beyond the village were full with giant green trees, and I could hear all the birds singing me forward. A dandelion had sprung up in the crack between two stones at the bottom step leading to Peeta's front door. I stopped to look at it, the tiny yellow petals and big sharp green leaves surrounding it protectively.

The door swung open with a creak, catching my attention. I looked up to see Peeta standing just inside, watching me closely with those big blue eyes. My heart beat a little quicker just from being so close to him after trying to see him for so long.

"Hello Katniss." He said quietly, pulling the door open wider as I came up the stairs.

I smiled at him as I reached the door, noticing his cheeks turn slightly pink as I came up next to him.

"Hi Peeta, long time no see." I stood right behind him as he closed the door, enjoying the fact that I finally got to speak to him. No closing curtains or walking the other way now.

I followed him up the curving staircase, making note of the fact that the stair second to the top creaked as soon as Peeta stepped on it. You never know when you'll need to know those types of things.

At the top of the stairs I could see just a long hallway, a door on each end and one right in front of us. Peeta started to lead me to the right, to the door that was open. There was a bed that looked like it had never been touched, a night stand, desk and big windows looking out onto the empty streets of the village. I could see Haymitch's house directly across the stone center of the village, though it was too early in the afternoon for him to be awake most likely.

"This room can be yours if you like. There's a big closet right here and if that's not enough there's also one in our bathroom." He stood there awkwardly in the center of the room, gesturing to the closet before walking out into the hall as I set my bag down on the bed.

"We share a bathroom, hopefully that won't be too much of a problem for you. We can make a schedule or something I guess…" He pointed to the door that was right at the top of the stairs, in the middle of the hall between the two bedrooms.

"I can give you a tour of the place after you get unpacked if you want."

"I'd like that." I say, making sure to lock eyes with him.

He looked so defeated, his shoulders slumped and his arms just hung at his sides as if they were too heavy for him to keep up. I couldn't bear to see him looking this way. I set the box down on the floor in the hallway behind me and came up beside him.

"Peeta, can I ask you something." I looked up into his eyes, and that stirring in my chest started.

"Anything."

"Can I put my things in your room?" His face changed to surprise at my request.

"You want to switch rooms with me?"

"No… I don't want a room of my own." I stepped closer to him, watching his face fill with color.

"There's only one bed Katniss."

"I know. I want to be with you. You know I only sleep well when I'm with you."

I took another step closer, leaving us only a few inches apart from each other. I raised my head so I was looking straight at him. Several expressions played across his face, confusion, joy, and something else. I think it was lust. Cautiously I brought one hand up to rest on his chest, feeling the solid muscle of his pecs beneath the thin material of his shirt. It was hot under my hand, making me wonder how warm his skin must be. I wondered if the warmth would travel on his skin anywhere I touched him.

I could feel my own face getting warm as a blush crept up my cheeks. My thumb rubbed the soft fabric of his shirt, and I heard his breathing quicken. Stepping up onto my tiptoes, I reached out and pressed my lips gently on his cheek near his ear. He sucked in a breath quickly and pulled me against him, my face resting between his shoulder and neck. I could smell him, a warm musky smell that I remembered from the cave.

Suddenly a shrill ringing filled the house, making both of us jump apart and look around in surprise.

"The phone." Peeta said, realizing what the noise was. He groaned in frustration as he ran down the stairs to grab the phone. I could hear him talking to someone, his voice coming out very curt.

I leaned up against the wall, allowing my blood to slow down. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror that was hanging on the wall. Flushed red cheeks standing out against my dark olive skin.

"That was Effie, reminding us we need to get some rest tonight since we have an early start tomorrow." Peeta said, standing at the base of the stairs looking up at me.

"Oh right." I nod, coming down the stairs to stand in front of him.

Keeping my feet on the last step I was almost the same height as him. His eyes looked me up and down before coming to rest on my lips. I licked them out of instinct, watching his eyelids lower slightly. I bent forward and gave him a small kiss on the cheek again, hovering near his ear.

"Good night Peeta. See you tomorrow." He sighed, reaching out for me but I rushed out the door and into the fresh air.

My body felt warm all over, in a way I hadn't felt before. How was I ever going to sleep tonight? I looked over my shoulder to see him standing at the door, those blue eyes following my every move down the road to my house. I couldn't help but become very excited and nervous thinking about how I'd be married to that boy this time tomorrow.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thank you so much those of you who reviewed, it really motivated me to write this next chapter. I really do appreciate every single review I get, so if you read this please just let me know you're out there by reviewing.

Chapter 4

I was woken up as several people came into my room, banging and slamming things down to set up for the day. Feet shuffled on the floor, and through my eyelids I could see the light on overhead. There was a moment of debate inside my head before I peeked an eye open to look around.

"It's about time you stopped pretending to be asleep. We have a big day ahead of us." My mother said her arms full of boxes of makeup that she was setting on a table near the foot of my bed.

I groaned and rolled over, knowing I'd have to jump right into my day without a moment to myself to wake up. As I sat up I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Hair stuck out in every possible direction, making me laugh out loud. My prep team looked at each other with faces full of judgment.

"Oh no, this is not funny. We have so much work to do on you to make you presentable."

I held back another laugh as I submitted to their skills. It only took a few hours to painfully remove every single hair from my body, make sure every little cut and scrape had been erased from my skin, and that I somehow seemed to glow from the inside out. The sun had risen from barely visible in the sky to now hanging slightly above the trees, signaling midmorning.

There was nothing much for me to do while I was put into the wedding dress that everyone had voted as their favorite. It was the last dress I had tried on for the photoshoot, and as I looked myself over in it I couldn't help but think that this is the dress I would have picked if I had had the choice. If I had had the chance to get married on my own terms. The thought felt treasonous as it crossed my mind. There was a part of me that knew that I should be fighting this, rebelling against being forced to do anything for the Capitol's entertainment and President Snow. But that part of me seemed to be growing smaller as I stared at the reflection of myself in the standing mirror. I looked so much like a bride, excited to walk down the aisle and start her new life. If this was the hand that I was to be dealt, I couldn't possibly have asked for a better person to go through this with.

A quick gasp from the doorway gave away my mother's position. Her eyes watered up and she covered her mouth with one hand as the other reached out to me.

"You are so breathtaking. I…" Her voice caught in her throat as she looked at me, and Prim peeked out from behind her.

"Wonderful, the whole family is up here with Katniss." Effie's voice came from the stairs down the hall.

She ushered all of us out of the room and down the stairs into the living room. Again there were flowers placed everywhere, turning the walls into a garden wall. Photographer snapped picture after picture of me with my mother and Prim. They then forced Gale to come and stand in a few pictures with me, pulling him out from the dark corner of the room he had been sitting in. It was our first time being together since our discussion by the lake which had not ended well for either of us.

He put on a great show, talking to the cameras about how beautiful he thought his favorite cousin looked. The smile on his face seemed convincing enough for all of the people there aside from me and my mother. Before I had a chance to actually say anything of meaning to him, more people from the district were pushed next to me. There wasn't a free moment to breathe or think on my own as I was pushed and pulled over to different locations in the house.

Finally Effie reappeared, a huge smile on her face as she clasped her hands together in the air.

"It's all clear to move to the venue now. " She winked at me, even though I had no idea what it meant.

We were all led from the house and into the front yard looking out at the village. The center square of the village was completely filled with decorations. On the half nearest me rows of chairs had been set up and covered in a translucent white fabric. A large alter was set up at the front, and there were vines of flowers draped across it. There was a small ceremonial fire pit at the base of the altar, already lit and ready for us. Two giant screens were set up, on either side of the altar for all of the people to see us up close during the ceremony.

My stomach tied in knots; I hadn't given much thought to what our public wedding would actually be like. I had hoped it would be a nice, simple and practical toasting as was customary here in District 12. Doubt came flooding in, and suddenly I wished I had given more consideration to Gale's offer to run away. There were camera crews setting up on both sides, trying to get as many angles as possible so the viewers across Panem wouldn't miss a moment.

"Let's get her behind the screen, here come all the guests." One of the wedding planners said, ushering me over to a curtained off area to the side.

I could hear too many feet to count pass by, the voices of people excitedly filling the air as the guests all found their seats. Taking a few big breaths to calm myself, I peeked through a worn spot in the curtain to look out at the crowd. It looked like every single person from District 12 was sitting out there waiting patiently.

From my right I heard Haymitch talking to someone in a hushed voice.

"You will do great, you always do. The crowd loves you. Just remember why you are here, that's all you need to think about." At his words, I hear someone near him let out a long sigh followed by some rustling.

I can just barely make out some blonde curls before someone spins me around to face them.

Prim and Madge stand before me, both in pretty matching light green dresses. There are matching ribbons in their hair and delicate bouquets of flowers tied with ribbon as well. It occurs to me that every detail of this wedding was thought through so carefully, and I never had much of anything to do with it. All those nights when my mother and Prim were up late downstairs while I struggled to sleep, they had been planning everything out based off of what I like. On impulse I grab Prim and pull her close to me, giving a tight hug before letting go of her.

Cinna came up behind them, a huge smile on his face. "You are a vision Katniss."

I can't help the slight blush that rises to my cheeks; Cinna's praise always holds so much weight with me.

"Are you ready? Prim and Madge will walk out first, when Prim is halfway down the aisle I'll motion for you to come out and start up to the altar." I nodded to his words, trying not to let my nerves get to me at all.

The music started up, a fiddle playing an ancient song called Jesu Joy of Man's desiring. Madge stepped out first, and ten paces behind Prim marched after. She gave me the tiniest of smiles before heading out to the crowd. I stood waiting for Cinna's signal. When he finally waved me forward, I forgot how to move.

Slowly I stepped away from the curtains and out into the aisle to find every head turned around to see me. There was murmuring as people took in the sight of me and my dress, and I smiled at each face as I slowly made my way up the aisle to the alter. There were flower petals covering the path, and more flowers attached to the backs of each chair that I had not noticed when I first arrived.

It wasn't until I was almost up to the front that I looked forward to see Peeta standing there waiting for me. His eyes were open wide, a look of pleasant surprise on his face being plastered across the giant screens. As I neared, his lip quivered and I picked up the pace of my steps to reach him quicker.

My heart was pounding so hard I was sure the entire audience could hear it beating. His hands reached out for mine as I reached the altar, and I grabbed onto them and held them tight in mine. Our eyes locked as I came to stand beside him, and I realized that his were already holding back tears.

As the ceremony began, a lump started in my throat which made it difficult for me to respond each time I was asked to repeat anything. All I wanted to do was stare into those blue eyes, fall deeply into them and never leave. Our hands held tightly together, I was only aware of the fact that I was standing there with Peeta and nothing else. It wasn't until we were asked to pick up our pieces of bread to toast on the fire that I realized that we were almost done with the ceremony.

We both took a long metal pole with a square of bread on it, and set it above the fire until they both caught fire. We placed our flaming bread squares in front of each other and together blew them out before eating the other piece. The crowd stood up and cheered, our faces showing close up on the big screens as we turned and greeted the crowd. Peeta put one arm around my shoulders and swung me up into his arms, my legs draped over his arm. He grinned out at the cheering crowd quick before staring down adoringly at me, his eyes so full of joy it made my heart hurt. He leaned his head down, taking my lips in his own in a gentle kiss. As the crowd screamed and cheered for us, I reached up and grabbed the back of his head, pulling him down for a second kiss. I felt his whole body move with the kiss, and as he set me back down on the ground I felt wetness on my cheek. As we both smiled and waved at the crowd, I could see the tears lining his eyes. I reached out for his hand, squeezing it with both hands as we were led down the aisle and out to the field where all the tables were set up for our reception.

Haymitch came rushing up to us, handing both of us glasses of champagne.

"Here comes the fun part." He said before downing a glass and smiling mischievously at us.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Thank you SO much to all of you who reviewed, seriously you are the reason I keep writing. Also want to give a big thank you to my sister Skiescryblood for being amazing at keeping my writing true to the characters! Please review so I know you are out there reading this

Chapter 5

Keeping a tight grip on Peeta's hand, we were both led down to where tables and a dance floor were set up in the meadow. Lanterns hung from the trees, giving off the look as if giant fireflies were circling us. There was a large table at the front, with chairs facing out to all of the other smaller, circle tables. Plates had already been set out at each spot, and several long tables were set up in the middle full of a buffet of food and drinks. There were two bars set up on either side of the dance floor with more tables near them. A band was setting up near the dance floor, and I was excited to see two fiddles being tuned.

We were ushered over to the front table, and sat down right in the middle seats which were turned toward each other. Our families all sat down at the table with us, and the tables out in front of us filled up quickly as people found their seats. I could feel that Peeta's hand was sweating as he held on to mine, and I gave it a little squeeze. He squeezed back, and when I caught his eye he beamed at me.

He scooted his chair closer to mine, and leaned in so close I could feel his breath on my skin.

"You are so beautiful; I can't believe you're really mine." He whispered.

I could feel my face turning bright red; his lips were almost on my ear and his words sent a shiver down my body. I turned to face him fully, and found myself nose to nose with him. I pushed my face forward slightly, making our noses bump together. He rubbed his nose against mine gently before pressing our foreheads together and letting out a long sigh, his fingers tangling in my hair at the base of my neck.

I opened my eyes to find his were still closed. I could see those long blond eyelashes resting against his cheeks before they fluttered as his eyes opened slightly. He looked at me a moment through his eyelashes before leaning all the way in, pressing his lips against mine. I pushed my lips against his, and the hand that he had in my hair pulled my face even closer to him.

Somebody cleared their throat very loudly into a microphone next to us, making us pull apart. A growl came out of Peeta's throat as he sat back, clearly flustered at the interruption. I noticed him clasp his hands over his lap as he stared at Haymitch holding the microphone. Haymitch gave both of us a wide grin before turning to the audience.

"Hate to interrupt that, but as the best man it's my job to give a toast to the happy couple." He had a shot glass in his hand already.

"Here's to Peeta and Katniss, a couple who beat all odds to be together here tonight."

He raised the shot glass in the air, and everyone in the crowd followed suit. I grabbed one of the shot glasses in front of me, filled to the brim and tried to tip it back into my mouth the way Haymitch and the crowd had. The drink in the glass burned as it went down, and I felt Peeta shudder beside me. A laugh slipped out of my lips as the shot made its way to my stomach making me shudder too, and we set our glasses down at the same time.

After Haymitch, several other people came up to give toasts so by the time we were ready to start dinner both Peeta and I were feeling all of the shots we did. My champagne glass also seemed to be refilling itself every time I took a sip, and my head was feeling very fuzzy. I accidentally knocked over my chair as I stood up to get some food, and Peeta jumped to his feet to help. As we both bent over to pick the chair up, we bumped heads, making me throw my head back and laugh.

"We're just a little bit tragic right now." I said through a giggle as he steadied me from falling.

"Maybe some food will help?" He looked over at the buffet.

We piled food up on our plates and then went to sit back up at the front table. Taking a big bite, I stared out into the crowd of guests at their tables. Thankfully everyone's attention had moved to their plates, giving me a moment to just take in everything. There was a screen set up behind our table, and photos of Peeta and me from all our shoots and appearances were being rotated. There were several cameramen around the meadow, filming people talking and one was pointed toward our table but he was too far away to catch anything we might say. The band had started to play a happy bluegrass song, and I could feel my feet moving to the beat.

"How are you feeling?" Peeta asked, noticing I had stopped eating.

I smiled, feeling the food in my stomach try to overtake all the alcohol in my system. It wasn't having any success and I was beginning to enjoy the light feeling in my head from all of the shots.

"I feel like dancing." I said, surprising myself as the words came out of my mouth.

Peeta raised an eyebrow at me before turning and staring down at the empty dance floor. I could see him debating something in his head but before he could speak Peeta's father came up to the microphone. He announced that it was time for our first dance, and motioned for us to come down to the dance floor. A spotlight came to rest on the center of the floor, showing us where to stand.

Peeta still had a strange expression on his face as he looked at me, but took me by the hand as we walked over to the spot light. The band started playing an old song, Forever and Ever, Amen. Peeta held out his hand for mine, and placed his other hand on my waist. As we began slowly swaying back and forth his strong arms pulled me close to him, and I pressed my cheek against his chest. He spun me around suddenly, dipping me down before pulling me back up to him. I looked up into his eyes and smiled, pulling my hands up to wrap around his neck. As we danced, he pulled his arms around my waist so that we were flush against each other. I could feel where my hips met his each time we moved, and I became very aware of how our bodies were touching as we danced. Every time his hips moved, I could feel him through the thin fabric of my dress, and on instinct I pressed back against him.

"Katniss, not during our first dance." He whispered in my ear, making me giggle.

I had forgotten that everyone was watching us. Peering over his shoulder I spotted a cameraman in the shadows at the edge of the dance floor, capturing the whole exchange. I gave the camera a nice smile as Peeta spun me around one more time. As the song came to an end he pulled me close against him again, tipping my face up and gave me a gentle kiss. We turned to the crowd, his arm wrapped tightly around my waist as we gestured for everyone to join us.

His hand moved up and down on my waist, feeling the curve of my hip and then up to just below my chest. It seemed like he wasn't paying much attention to it, so when I placed my hand over his I was surprised when he wrapped both arms around me from behind. He rested his head on my shoulder, and the two of us swayed slightly to the music as all of our guests poured onto the dance floor. I turned to face him and he raised his eyebrows at me.

His broad shoulders filled out the coat and button down shirt he was wearing, and the blue of his tie matched his eyes almost perfectly. I tugged on the edge of it, feeling the smooth fabric with my fingertips. He watched my fingers sliding over his chest for a minute, silent though I could see he was thinking something over. As we stood there, I realized I had a feeling of happiness I had never felt before in my life. I had expected to be extremely nervous about this wedding, about how different our life would be from this day forward. Instead, standing here with him holding me, all I could think about was just how happy I was to be with him. Sure our wedding was rushed, and being forced into it was not how I had ever pictured this happening. But the way Peeta was looking at me was enough to tell me how much it meant to him. My heart felt ready to burst. _This must be what love feels like_. The thought made me smile.

Suddenly all of the shots I'd done during the toasts hit me full on, and I stumbled backwards off of the dance floor onto the grass. Throwing my head back I let out a loud laugh as Peeta rushed to help me up.

"How about I get us some water to drink." He said, leading me to a nearby chair.

"Probably a good idea." I said through a laugh.

He glanced at me over his shoulder as he walked over to one of the bars. I could see him talking to the bar tender for a minute. My eyes wandered over the crowd, and I noticed several couples were already heading to the meadow. Haymitch and Effie were standing under a flowering tree, both laughing and leaning in towards each other. Prim was out on the dance floor dancing with her friends in a big circle.

A hand came down on my shoulder, making me jump as I looked up. Gale's grey eyes stared down at me, his face very serious.

"Can I have this dance?" He asked, his voice trying to sound more pleasant than he looked.

"Of course." I said, standing up and following him to a corner of the dance floor.

The song the band was playing was quick and lively, which seemed so opposite from Gale's attitude at the moment.

He held me at an arm's length away as we danced. Neither of us said a thing, just dancing in silence while other couples twirled past us on the floor. I could feel all the alcohol inside me swimming through my blood, making it hard to think clearly.

"Gale." I said, not able to bear the awkward silence any longer.

"Look, I don't like the way we left off last. I wasn't being fair; you didn't choose to get married right now." He looked at me, so serious that it made me giggle.

Before I knew it I was beside myself laughing and I couldn't stop. He stood there staring me down, and then started to laugh a little as I gasped for air between laughs and reached out for him to steady myself.

"You are a mess right now Catnip." He said kindly, bracing my shoulders with his arms.

I tried to think of something to say in response, but it felt like there was an ocean inside my head swirling around. Looking over his shoulder I spotted Peeta watching us, two glasses of water in his hand. I pulled away from Gale's arms and tried to compose myself. The hurt expression on his face was killing me. He set the water down on a table and stormed off.

"I love you Gale. Not like that though." I snorted. "I promise we'll talk later, ok?"

He nodded, giving me a quick peck on the cheek before gesturing that I could go. I heard him go up to someone behind me and strike up a conversation, and I wondered momentarily how he could move on so quickly when a minute before he'd wanted to have a serious discussion with me about our friendship.

The water Peeta had left on the table was nice and cold, I felt it slide down my throat and settle in my stomach. I looked around for any sign of him, spotting a camera man filming in on me as I stood there alone. Several people came up to congratulate me, and I politely thanked them all while scanning the tables around the meadow. Finally I spotted his golden head at a table in a shadowy corner under a tree. His brother and Haymitch were also at the table with him, and I could see them passing around a bottle of something.

There was a bar on the walk over to their table, and I stopped and took another shot that was sitting out. I figured it couldn't hurt at this point to have one more ounce in my blood. As I approached the table they all stopped talking, his brother turning around in his seat to watch me walk up. Haymitch took his feet down from the chair next to him, and I took it as an invitation to sit down.

"What's that?" I asked, nodding to the bottle in Peeta's hand.

"Whiskey." Peeta said, taking a big swig before setting it down on the table next to me. His face screwed up as he swallowed, letting a small shudder go through his body.

I sniffed the mouth of the bottle, and my stomach curled up at the scent of the whiskey. It smelled as if it could strip my throat completely if I drank it, but I decided to try it anyway. I tipped the bottle up, and as the liquid filled my mouth I understood why Peeta had made such a funny face as he drank it. Not wanting to look silly I took a few sips, trying not to stick my tongue out in disgust after I set the bottle back down.

"That was awful." I said, wishing I'd brought something else to wash the taste out of my mouth.

"You stop tasting it after a while." Peeta's brother said as he stood up. He patted his brother's shoulder and waved at us as he walked away into the crowd.

Effie came stumbling through, her pink wig slightly crooked, carrying a giant pink drink in her perfectly manicured hand. Haymitch got to his feet and followed Effie like a shadow, leaving Peeta and I alone at the table. I looked over at him, playing with the label on the bottle of whiskey. His jacket was spread across the back of the chair; his tie was very loose around his neck and his shirt unbuttoned at the neck. I could tell from the flush on his face that he was as drunk as I was, if not more so. My hand reached out for his, but he just let my hand rest there on the table.

"Did you and Gale have a nice time out there?" He asked, not meeting my eyes.

"He was just trying to apologize." I said, frowning.

"It looked like more than that to me. It should be me making you laugh out there." He said quietly.

He seemed to be debating adding something; he kept opening his mouth and then shutting it again. Again I reached out for him, and he took my hand in his. He rubbed the top of my hand with his thumb, still lost in thought. We noticed at the same time a camera coming closer to us, trying to get a good shot of us at the table. A tiny frown crossed his full lips before he placed a charming smile on instead. Grabbing the bottle and taking a very long pull from it, he pulled me up from the chair and out onto the dance floor.

The band switched to a new song, and with so much whiskey in me I felt each beat of the drum. My hips started swaying along with the beat, and my arms came up to rest around Peeta's neck. He looked uncomfortable for a moment before he placed his hands on my waist, matching my movements. I closed my eyes, letting the music flow through me and moved with it.

I moved my hands from his neck down to his muscular shoulders and then back up to rest at the base of his neck. I tightened my arms around his neck, closing the gap between our bodies. His hands moved from my waist down to my hips, his fingers gripping my hipbones and pulling me close to him. I moved my hips against his, smiling as I heard him take in a breath. When I did it again, he dug his fingers into my hips. Enjoying the response I was getting, I slid my body slowly down the front of him, my chest rubbing against his as my hands ran down his back to his hips. I dipped down to the floor before rising back up, making sure to push my hips forward into him as I came back up to standing. His face was becoming flushed, and when I ground my hips against his he let out a groan. I spun around, putting my back up against his chest and grabbed his hand. I brought his hand up to my neck before sliding it slowly down the front of my body all the way down to the top of my thigh. I leaned forward, holding his hand against me, and then slowly rose back up, making sure to press my ass up against his hips. He held me against him and I could hear he was breathing raggedly.  
The song came to an end and I spun around to face him. He was breathing hard, face red, and there was a hunger in his eyes I had never seen before.

"Katniss"

"Hmm?" I asked, looking at him innocently.

"Maybe we should head home." He looked down at the tent growing in his pants and then around guiltily.

While we were dancing, most of the guests had wandered off into the meadow; we could see many couples out in the fields partially covered by grass and wildflowers. There were still people dancing around us, but they weren't paying any attention to us. The candles were all burning down, and everything seemed to be winding down. A million stars were shining above us in the sky.

"Probably a good idea." I agreed, taking his hand.

He stopped at the table we had been sitting at before, taking one last pull from the bottle before walking back to the village. He was uncharacteristically quiet as we walked hand in hand back to his house. Our house now. The realization of what us going back to his house meant hit me as we came to the door. He picked me up in his arms, carrying me across the threshold into the house. Kicking the door shut behind him he carried me up the stairs to the bedroom.

He carried me over to the bed and tossed me right into the middle of it. I looked up at him in shock, not sure what I was supposed to do. There was something wild about him, he stared down at me predatorily as I lay there looking back up at him. He stood at the edge of the bed, breathing heavily and I watched his broad chest move in and out with each breath.

Suddenly he turned around and sat at the edge of the bed and began untying the lace on his shoe. As he took his shoes off I climbed off the bed and tried to take my dress off. The zipper was stuck, so I marched over to Peeta.

"Could you help me with the zipper?" I asked, turning my back to him.

"With pleasure." He said in a low voice.

He quickly got the top of the zipper undone, running his fingers over my exposed back.

"Thanks." I said, pulling away from him and preventing his hands from continuing their exploration of my back.

Holding the dress over my chest I shuffled over to the bathroom.

The dress slid off my body easily and I let it fall to the floor. There was a large mirror that went from floor to ceiling and I stared at the reflection of my body. My skin shone in the moonlight coming in through the window, and the white lace boyshorts I was wearing almost glowed in the dark. The white lace bra that they had had me wear under my dress was uncomfortable, and I adjusted it around my chest to make it more comfortable. _Peeta will probably take that off anyway_. As soon as that thought came into my head I felt warmth run through my face and down my body.

It was a good thing I had quite a bit of whiskey still flowing through my blood, because I had absolutely no idea what I was supposed to do on my wedding night. Aside from making out with Peeta I had never done anything remotely sexual in my life. I ran my hand across my stomach, trying to calm myself down.

As I walked back into the bedroom I could see Peeta laying on the bed in the darkness. The whiskey in my system prevented me from feeling as nervous as I should be, and I slid onto the bed next to him. He lay there very still, not moving at all. His mouth was hanging open slightly, and I could see that he was breathing very deeply.

I shook him to make sure, and when he didn't respond I realized he had passed out cold. I stared at him, fast asleep, and then curled up beside him with a sigh. Well, it wasn't what I was expecting for my wedding night at all. I gave him a small kiss on the lips before falling fast asleep as well.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Hey everyone, seriously you are all awesome for reviewing. Your reviews are what make me inspired to keep writing!

Chapter 6

I woke up to fingers running gently up and down my arm. I could feel that my head was resting on a strong arm and for a minute I just allowed myself to lie there, enjoying the feeling of being held. Peeta's mouth was so close to my neck I could feel his warm breath on my skin.

Sunlight poured in through the bedroom window in streams, and I could hear birds singing happily in the tree outside. As I blinked my eyes open, I felt a pounding in my head. The birds were too loud, the room too bright. Letting out a groan I rolled onto my back and pressed my palms against my forehead, hoping that would somehow take some of the pain away. When that didn't work I forced myself to sit up and look around. Just the motion of getting up seemed a struggle.

When my eyes were adjusted to the painful brightness of the room I noticed a cup of tea on the bedside table next to me. In unfamiliar handwriting a note beside it said "For your head." I picked the cup up, sniffing the steaming liquid before tasting it. There was a bag of herbs floating in the tea, and I recognized my mother's stamp on it. Had she come over while I slept and dropped this off?

With each sip of the tea the fog inside my head cleared more and more until I was feeling like my old self. I made a mental note that I needed to thank her when I got downstairs. Then I remembered that she wouldn't be downstairs but three houses away because I was in Peeta's house. In his bed.

I set the tea back down on the table and rolled over to face Peeta. He was propped up on his side, his eyes wide open and staring back at me. A smile spread across his face as our eyes locked. He pulled me closer to him before resting his hand on my waist, his fingertips grazing my skin and leaving a trail of goosebumps. Running his hand through my hair before placing his hand on the back of my head, he brought my lips down to his and gave me a kiss. I closed my eyes, enjoying the soft feeling of his lips against mine. He pulled back only enough to look at me.

"Good morning Katniss."

"Mm, good morning Peeta." I stretched out my body, accidentally pressing our lower bodies together.

He was hard and instinctively bucked forward to meet my body, his hands trapping me and holding me against him. My heart started beating faster as he rolled over so that I was beneath him, his weight pressing me into the mattress. Our eyes locked as he brought his face back down to mine, kissing my right cheek, then moving to my left, and then my forehead before coming back to stare into my eyes. I sucked in my breath, and a ghost of a smile spread across Peeta's lips.

His hand came slowly up to my shoulder, his fingertips barely grazing my skin as they traveled down my collarbone and then over to the curve of my breast. I became painfully aware of the fact that I had fallen asleep in nothing but my lace underwear, and I could feel my face getting hot.

I took in another breath as his hand traveled down from my chest to my ribs, feeling my ribs and then circling my belly button. I arched my back up to him as he bent down and placed a kiss on each side of my hips at my hipbones. His eyes then focused lower, and he hesitated as he stared between my legs, which had fallen open. He glanced back up at my face, and I must have looked scared because he smiled reassuringly at me. His hand came to the top of my knee, slowly sliding it down the inside of my thigh, and at his touch I let out a gasp. I snapped my knees together and laughed nervously, and was surprised to see that Peeta let out a nervous laugh too.

"Sorry, did I do something wrong?" he asked, looking concerned.

"No, not at all. I mean, I don't think so… I just wasn't used to it." I say back, sitting up and putting my arms around my knees protectively.

I can see how turned on he is from here, and I feel both guilty and disappointed that his hand is gone from me.

He started moving to the space next to me on the bed and then changed his mind, staying near the edge and holding his hands over his lap to cover himself. His eyes were clouded in lust, and I could see that he was warring with himself over something.

"We can take it slow, ok? I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you into anything." He grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze before standing up.

I nodded to his words, understanding what he was saying. He was clearly worried still that I was doing this because we were forced to be married. I'll have to figure out a way to show him that I want to be here with him.

"I'm going to go make us some breakfast. You can stay here and sleep some more if you'd like. Your mom dropped off an entire box of tea for us so I can make some more for you as well." I grabbed his hand and gave it a kiss flat across his palm, making him smile.

"Sounds good." I watched him head to the stairs.

I wandered down the hall into the bathroom and spotted my wedding dress hanging up on a hanger. Last night I had left it lying on the floor, so Peeta obviously had picked it up for me. The shower squeaked as I turned it on, and I looked myself over quick in the mirror before getting under the water.

I let the water fall over my body as I thought about what had just happened. I really hadn't wanted Peeta to stop, but obviously he had interpreted my shock as opposition. I may have no idea what to expect or what to do, but I could tell my body was ready for whatever was coming. Even through the soap and water I could smell something delicious baking downstairs so I hurried to finish washing off.

The fuzzy rug on the bathroom floor felt nice between my toes as I hopped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel I carelessly wrapped it around my shoulders and rubbed my hair dry. As I walked out of the bathroom I ran straight into Peeta, and I set a hand out to steady myself. His chest muscle flexed beneath my fingers, he grabbed my shoulders with both hands to stop me from falling backward. His eyes quickly went over my body covered only in the towel, and his grip on my shoulders became tighter. I moved my hand to hold onto the towel to secure it across my chest, and the motion seemed to draw Peeta's attention back to my face.

"I was coming up to tell you breakfast is read." He said, rubbing my shoulder slowly.

I looked down at his hand on my bare skin, still wet since I hadn't tried to dry off much. His hand was big and square, calloused from years of working, and his large thumb was making small circles. The thumb moved from my shoulder to my collarbone, tracing the curve gently.

He laid his palm flat against my skin of my chest, right above my heart and I looked up at him. His eyes were focused on my chest, his brow slightly furrowed, and I placed my hand over his. Finally those blue eyes rose to meet mine, and we stood there holding our hands over my beating heart for what felt like forever. My hand rose up to his face, cupping his cheek and feeling the slight roughness of his unshaven face against my fingers. He closed his eyes at my touch, a small smile gracing his lips. I stood up on my toes and pressed my lips to his.

At first the kiss was sweet, my hands holding his face close to mine but then I sucked his lip into my mouth. The response was immediate. He let out a groan and he pushed me against the wall. I let out a noise of surprise which he seemed to misinterpret because he smiled against my lips before running the tip of his tongue along my open lips. Instinctively I pulled his tongue into my mouth with my own, and rubbed my tongue against his. Our tongues battled back and forth between my mouth and his, each time his tongue becoming more forceful as it entered my mouth. The hand that had been on the small of my back slid down to the hem of the towel and the curve of my ass and I froze at the touch. Peeta pulled back from my lips and his eyes were so full of lust as he looked inquisitively at me.

"I'm sorry." He said, moving his hand back up to the safety of my back.

I tried to tell him it was ok, but my voice seemed lost in my throat. There was a strange burning between my legs I was aware of, and a large part of me wanted to place his hand back on me.

Peeta sighed and stepped away from me. His lips were red and swollen, his cheeks flushed and his hair mussed from my hands running through them. He did look delicious standing there, and for a moment I felt very silly pushing this boy away from me. Especially when I saw the hunger in his eyes as he stood panting against the other wall. He laughed when he noticed me watching his reaction, and he looked up at the ceiling for a minute before coming back over to me. Placing an arm across my shoulder he rested his cheek against the top of my head.

"Hey it's alright, I'm sorry I came on too strong right after I told you we'd take it slow. I just have been dreaming of being this close to a practically naked you for so long." As the words came out of his mouth, he smirked at me making me blush.

I grinned back at him and then slipped into the bedroom. Right before I closed the door he grabbed me and gave me a quick kiss. I half expected him to follow me in the room.

"So yeah, breakfast is ready. Whenever you want it." He gave me one last look before heading back downstairs.

I realized after looking around that I had never unpacked my things the day I moved my stuff over. Peeta had brought both the box of dresses and my bag of clothes into the room so I dug through them until I found something to wear. I could feel the heat from outside coming in through the window so I chose a simple sundress to wear. This was the first time Peeta and I have been alone without any sort of capitol agenda forcing us to play up our love story. It also meant I could finally wear what I wanted, so I ignored the uncomfortable lace bra that I'd worn yesterday and just slid the dress on over my head.

Peeta looked up from the TV as I came downstairs and into the kitchen. Clips from our wedding were playing on the news, and I couldn't help but appreciate how good we looked together on the screen. Taking the seat right next to Peeta I looked over the breakfast he had made for us.

"I wasn't sure what you would be in the mood for." He said, looking slightly guilty about having made so much food.

"Honestly I am hungry enough for all of this I think." I said as I grabbed three different types of muffins and put them on my plate.

After eating in pleasant silence for a few minutes with only the sound of the TV in the background I felt Peeta's eyes on my face so I looked up. He looked nervous so I smiled reassuringly at him before realizing I probably had poppy seeds all over the place and let out a laugh.

"This is the first time we've really hung out on our own." I said as I realized it really was just the two of us from here on out.

Peeta smiled at me, but still didn't say anything. Instead he picked at the muffin on his plate, looking up at me through his eyelashes. I could practically see the gears turning in his mind, but I wasn't sure what he could be thinking about so I didn't prompt him. Instead I reached across the table and picked up his hand, pressing my lips against his palm and kissing it. When I placed his hand back down on the table he was staring at me with an expression that was hard to read.

"This is real, isn't it? I'm not having a wonderful dream that I'll wake up from any minute now and not have you, right?" His eyebrows were knit together worriedly.

When I didn't answer right away he looked down at his plate, looking embarrassed.

"It's real." I leaned over, trying to catch his eye.

"It's just, I spent so many years trying to figure out any way I could think of to talk to you. Every time I would get up the courage to try to talk to you, I'd lose my confidence as soon as you'd look at me. I didn't think you even remembered who I was until the reaping, and then it was so hard. I was so scared for you but a big part of me was excited because I finally had my chance to talk to you. The hunger games were both the best and worst thing that could have happened to me, because it brought me to you."

He looked up at me with a nervous expression on his face, brow furrowed and his lips parted. Before I knew what I was doing I leaped up from my seat and over to him, throwing my arms around his neck.

"Peeta, that's the sweetest thing I've ever heard you say."

He pulled me down onto his lap, pressing our foreheads together as we stared into each other's eyes. My heart felt like it was swelling in my chest, I was falling into his eyes and never wanted to come out. His hand came up to tuck a strand of my hair behind my ear before placing it at the back of my head, crushing his lips against mine. I leaned into the kiss, getting swept up into it.

He tasted sweet as the muffins he'd been eating. I moved my lips to his jaw, following the curve up to his ear and sucked his earlobe into my mouth. I heard his breath hitch slightly and took that as a good sign so I did it again, this time grazing my teeth as I sucked in. He dug his fingers into the flesh of my hips as he pulled me closer onto his lap, and the roughness of the fly of his pants rubbed against me from the motion. He sucked on the hollow spot between my collarbones, and I tilted my head back to give him more access to my neck.

I slid my hands up and down his chest, loving the feeling of how solid his body was below me, and he slid his hands down my waist all the way to my thighs.

Just to the left of my ear the phone rang so loud I jumped off Peeta's lap to a standing position. He glared at the phone as if that would make it stop ringing, so I went over to pick it up. My mother's voice came in quietly from the other end of the phone, and I wanted to laugh as I watched Peeta deflate in the chair. I felt slightly guilty, that was the second time today that I'd gotten him all worked up only to pull away.

After I hung up the phone I came to stand in front of Peeta, just out of reach of his arms.

"That was my mother. She said our wedding was such a big hit already that they want to film a follow up to see how we're adjusting to being newlyweds. In a week they're sending a train to pick us up to go to the capitol."

He thought this bit of news over for a minute and then stood up so that he was right next to me again.

"Guess we'll have to give them something new to talk about then." A smile spread across his lips, and then he swept me up in his arms and spun me around.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: I just wanted to say all of you are awesome, seriously it made me so happy reading your reviews. I have to give a big thank you to my sister, Skiescryblood for reading through and helping correct my tenses since I need so much haha. If any of you ship Haymitch and Effie, she has a great fanfic of them. Also thank you all for being so patient, finally some juicy parts in this chapter for all of you! As always, please review so I know if you want more!

Chapter 7

After our late breakfast I told Peeta that I wanted to stop by and see my mom and Prim and thank them for the tea they had dropped off. He ran upstairs to shave and get ready, so I gathered our plates and cleaned them in the sink. I waited to hear his footsteps coming back down the stairs and then I slipped my feet into my shoes. He smiled at me and reached for my hand, pulling me out onto the street with him.

The walk to my old house was quick, I could tell from the location of the sun hanging in the western sky that I must have slept in late, since it was already the middle of the afternoon. The air was thick, my skin feeling sticky with sweat and the humidity. Heat bugs chirped loudly at us as we walked past. The branches on the trees seemed to hang heavy and low to the path from the heat, their leaves pointing the way forward.

When we knocked on the door, it is pulled open by Rory, Gale's younger brother who is Prim's age. He raises his eyebrows at us before letting us in. I spot Prim sitting at the table in front of a chess set and she beams up at me.

"Katniss!" She said, rushing over and giving me a big hug.

"Hello little duck." I say, smoothing the frizz on the back of her head into her two braids. "Is mom here?"

"Oh no, she went into town to get some more bandages and some herb from Hazelle." Prim answers, pulling me over to a chair next to her to sit.

Rory took the seat across from Prim at the table, and I noticed how his eyes kept sneaking glances of my sister as they played. They almost looked like the miniature version of my mother and father, sitting there stealing looks at each other while the other wasn't looking. I felt a smile creeping up my face as we visited both Prim and Rory trying to catch me off guard with questions about how our night had gone.

Peeta reached over and grasped my hand, giving it a small squeeze and our eyes locked. He motioned slightly with his head towards the door and I nodded, standing up.

"We're heading into town, do you want anything?" I asked.

Prim and Rory both shook their heads no, and I noticed Rory's feet were wrapped around one of Prim's. I gave Prim a kiss on the top of her head and then waved to Rory, not missing the wink that Peeta gave him as we walked back outside into the heat.

"That was cute, your sister and her friend in there." Peeta said as we walked, reclaiming my hand in his.

"Mmhmm, they've been best friends pretty much since the day they met."

We walked along the path from the Victor's Village into town in a comfortable silence, my arm swinging back and forth slightly as we held hands. As we passed by a stone wall in front of one of the stores in town I let my fingers brush against the rough surface, enjoying the roughness of the rock. Peeta watched my fingers as we continued walking, and when our eyes met he chuckled and looked straight ahead at the path.

The door to Peeta's father's bakery was open and I could hear his mother talking loudly to a customer from inside. He glanced at me for a moment before placing his hands on my forearms, standing directly in front of me.

"I'll just wait out here." I muttered, sitting down on one of the planters filled with flowers beside the door.

Peeta thought it over a moment before shaking his head no. "No, no. You're my wife, there's nothing she can do to keep me away from you anymore. She has to be nice to you now."

I played with a loose stone on the ground with the toe of my shoe instead of looking up at him or responding. After a few moments passed I realized he was still standing there staring at me. When I looked up at him he grabbed my hands and pulled me to my feet, and I let out a long sigh.

"Fine, obviously me waiting outside isn't an option." I fake glared at him before following him into the store.

His mother stopped talking as soon as she saw who had walked into her shop, and a scowl covered her face before she forced herself to give a pained smile in my direction. She finished ringing up the customer she had been helping coming around to the front of the counter, sweeping her son up into her bony arms.

She fussed over him for a few minutes, asking him if he needed anything, all the while not mentioning the wedding or me at all. I let them have a moment, wandering over to the display case and eyeing up the cheese rolls and pastries set out. There were several cakes that had beautiful frosting on them, a sunset cake and one that looked like a watercolor painting.

"He made these for you." Peeta's older brother Proja said, slipping me a brown paper package.

I held the package in my hands, feeling the weight of something round inside the crinkly paper. When I looked back up to thank his brother, he had already disappeared into the back of the store, and so my eyes met with Mrs. Mellark's instead. She made a small noise in her throat at the sight of me holding something in my hands and Peeta kissed her on the cheek quick before coming to stand beside me. He too glanced at the package I was holding before wrapping an arm protectively around my shoulders.

"Ready to get out of here?" He asked, his lips grazing my ear.

I nodded, and he guided me through the door and into the fresh air. Even though the sun was now hovering low enough in the sky to touch the top leaves of the trees the air was still thick with summer heat. My eyes wandered down the street towards the Seam, and I felt Peeta's arm around my shoulders lower to circle my waist.

We had only made it passed a few stores before Peeta's hand wandered past my waist to my hip, making sure to rub over the curve of my backside first. His fingers played with the thin fabric of my dress, and I realized he was tracing the line of my underwear.

When I turned my face to his, he gave me a predatory grin before spinning me to face him fully. He crushed his lips against mine, and my legs felt weak as he pushed me up against the stone wall of a store. The stone felt cool against my hot skin, but I barely had time to register that because Peeta was kissing me with such strength I thought he might pull my heart right out of my chest and up to his lips. I returned the kiss, pulling his bottom lip into my mouth and biting down just hard enough to surprise him. He pressed his entire body, all solid muscle and strength, full against mine so that I was pinned against him and the wall. My hands weaved through his thick hair, curls wrapping around my fingers. His hands found mine and brought them up above our heads and against the stone as his hips thrust up against mine. My body responded on instinct, and I could feel him grow hard against my thigh as I rubbed up against him.

Footsteps approached from the road and I realized that we were basically on display for anyone who cared to look over at us.

"Let's go to the meadow." I said, my voice coming out much lower than usual.

Peeta simply nodded, looking as if the last thing in the world he wanted was to separate from me.

I tugged on his hand, pulling us away from the wall and hurrying to the edge of town and to the great expansive meadow. The sun was setting fully now, drenching everything in a beautiful orange glow. The tall grass of the meadow looked almost on fire as it swayed back and forth in the hot breeze, and as soon as we were off the path Peeta jumped on me.

I ran a hand from his neck, down his chest and stomach, and down to the bulge that was straining against the fabric of his pants. Cautiously I ran my palm against him, feeling his hips move forward to meet my hand as I rubbed him and I looked at Peeta's face. His mouth was slightly open, and his blue eyes were so wide as he looked at me. I gave him a quick kiss on the lips, and then brought my attention back down, running a fingertip along his length. As I traced the head through his pants he let out a groan, grabbing my hand and placing it firmly around him. A burning had started between my legs; I felt an ache in me that I hadn't felt before. As I rubbed my hand over him the burning feeling got stronger, and the thought occurred to me that it felt almost like an emptiness that needed filling. A blush covered my cheeks at the thought, and Peeta's hand came to cover mine. I looked up at him and the intense hunger and lust in his eyes alarmed me. Suddenly Peeta picked me up and into the air, his big strong arms lifting me with ease before bringing me back down and kissing me gently. He lay me down on the ground and lay beside me, the grass completely covering us from view from the road.

"So where were we?" I asked, making my fingers walk up his thigh to the zipper of his pants.

He stilled my hand with his as I popped the button open and was about to undo the zipper.

"You're sure?"

I nodded, reaching over with my free hand and giving him a kiss that came out rougher than I had intended. He growled into the kiss, forcing his tongue into my mouth and rubbing it against my own tongue. I sucked his tongue farther into my mouth, and as our tongues slid back and forth in my mouth I moved the zipper all the way down. My hand pulled his pants down enough to pull him out, and he broke the kiss to look down. I wrapped my hand around the shaft, surprised by how soft his skin was.

Peeta's eyes fluttered closed at my touch, and I felt his body shake as I tentatively moved my hand up and down. I ran my thumb over the head and stopped as a bead of precum came out at my touch. I moved my thumb across it, and it made my hand glide across his skin easily. I began swirling my fingers across his head and all the way down to the base, watching him grow even harder. His breath was coming in short pants, his eyes focused on my hands with a look of awe on that beautiful face. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do, but the feel of him in my hands was making me hot all over. I placed a kiss on each knee, taking my hands and placing them on his legs and raking my nails gently all the way down to the base of his shaft. He arched his back, letting out a moan as I wrapped my fingers back around him and slid my hand up and down over and over again. The faster I went, the harder he breathed and the view of Peeta responding to me this way made me ache for him.

Another bead of precum came out the tip of the head, and for some reason I wanted to lick it off of him. I moved between his legs, making eye contact with him as I stuck my tongue out and lightly licked the tip. He let out a low moan, his hands reaching out to my head and leading my face back down to him. I swirled the tip of my tongue around the head, enjoying the salty taste of him.

"Katniss…" Peeta gasped, running a hand through my hair and looking at me with those big blue eyes so wide.

I smiled sweetly at him before taking him fully into my mouth, keeping our eyes locked as I sucked on him. Slowly I moved my mouth all the way down, and then back up to almost the top, sliding just the tip of him in and out of my lips. Peeta thrust upward with his hips, causing his length to go all the way to the back of my throat and back out. His eyes shut tight and the fingers in my hair pulled almost painfully. I brought my hand to the base and began stroking as I continued moving my mouth up and down his shaft, fully enjoying the sounds he was making and the deep flush on his cheeks. Suddenly his body froze up, his hands forcing my head still as he bucked up one last time before shuddering. Something hot hit the back of my throat and I swallowed instinctively.

Peeta pulled me up to lay next to him, his arms wrapping tightly around my frame as he caught his breath. I put my head on his chest, and I could hear his heart pounding loudly in my ear. The ache between my legs had turned into a throbbing that I had trouble ignoring. I peered up at his face and saw tears in Peeta's eyes as he pulled me even closer to him.

"You are amazing." He said, still a little winded.

A proud grin spread across my face and I nuzzled his neck, enjoying the fact that I was the reason Peeta was so happy. A little chuckle left my lips as I felt him shudder as my fingers absentmindedly rubbed his chest.

"You don't know how long I've wanted to feel your hands on me." He whispered, his low rumble of a voice sending a shiver down my spine.

"It was worth the wait then?" I asked, and he let out a low chuckle.

"Oh yeah." He said, rolling me over so that he was on top of me, his strong biceps bulging as they supported his weight. I reached up to grab his face, letting out a shriek of laughter as he playfully bit my shoulder. His large hand came to rest on my cheekbone, one rough thumb running along the curve of my face, and the look in his eyes stopped my heart. There was so much adoration and joy and love in those eyes, I wanted to melt into him and stay forever in this place.

Crickets started chirping all around us as the last ray of the sun disappeared below the mountains, leaving us in the dark light of dusk. A firefly flew past, and I rolled onto my back to look at the stars as they popped up in the sky. Peeta held me tight at his side, and I tried to spot some of the constellations my father had told me about as a child. I found the Little Bear in the sky, and pointed up into the sky to show Peeta where it was. A quiet snore informed me that I had worn Peeta out, and so I lay looking up at the blinking stars until they completely took over the sky.


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Thank you so much for the awesome reviews everyone, you are my inspiration to write. Please if you read my story review to let me know you are out there.

Chapter 8

As I began to wake up I became aware of the fact that I was being carried somewhere. I jumped, my eyes flying open wide only to fall on Peeta's face in the moonlight. These were his big arms holding me close to his chest, his footsteps echoing on the stone path. When he looked down and noticed I was awake he lowered his face down to mine, giving me a gentle kiss.

"You looked so beautiful sleeping there in the field, I hated to wake you." He whispered.

I can see the stars shining in his eyes, like great round pools in the darkness. I brought my hand up to caress his face, tracing a finger along his strong jawline. He leaned into my touch, giving my wrist a small nip with his lips as he continued walking through the night.

As much as I wanted to stay awake and watch how the moonlight turned his skin a beautiful pale blue color there was a tugging behind my eyelids, and they slid closed. Before I dropped back into sleep I registered that there was something resting on my stomach, and my fingers ran across the crinkly brown paper of the cheese buns his brother had given me.

When I finally came back to, the sun had fully risen in the sky. The thick green of the trees covering the mountains swayed in the same hot breeze now blowing through the open window. I could smell all of the flowers blooming from the fields, calling me to them. Rolling over I was disappointed to find the place next to me in the bed was empty. A run of my hand over the crumpled blanket told me that Peeta had left the space quite some time ago, there was no body heat left on the fabric.

After taking a fast shower I threw on a flowy white tank top and some shorts, leaving my hair down my back to dry naturally in the hot air. As I padded down the stairs I heard voices down below, and I could pick out that they were both male. Entering the living room my eyes immediately found the form of Haymitch filling out an armchair, his long brown arms draped over the armrests, his rough hands hanging over the edges casually. Peeta was seated across from him, a serious expression on his face as he listened to Haymitch's words. They both stopped and turned to me as I came fully into the room.

Peeta reached out for me, pulling me down to sit on his lap on the chair and giving my shoulder a light kiss before resting his chin on me.

"Hello Haymitch."

He gave me a small nod.

"Delivering some bad news I'm afraid." He looked soberly at both of us.

The grasp Peeta had on me tightened as I turned to look at him for answers.

"What bad news? What's happened?"

Haymitch looked around the room slowly before leaning in closer to us. "Your honeymoon's been cut short. A train will be arriving soon to take you both to the Capitol to film your follow up interview with Ceasar."

I leaned backin to Peeta, pressing my back against his hard chest and grabbing both of his hands in mine.

"Why would they do that?" I asked, fearing the answer.

"Seems there's been some… trouble in some of the other districts. They have some questions planted into the interview for you to answer that they hope will squash these rumors floating around about what happened in the games." His eyes were dark with emotion, and my skin prickled at his words.

"Are you coming with us?"

"No, I've done too much traveling these past few months." As he answered he looked to his left and I got the strong feeling there was something he wanted to say that he couldn't.

I followed the line of his eyes to a vase filled with flowers, and my heart slowed as I noticed that they were roses. They must be bugged, this entire conversation being carefully monitored by some capitol worker right now. Fear filled me, and I struggled to breath. What were they really going to have us do?

Peeta stirred below me, and I slid off his lap to stand beside him, his hand finding mine and squeezing it.

"Suppose I should let you lovebirds pack for your big interview." Haymitch said, stretching as he stood up and nodded one last time to us before disappearing out the front of the house.

We turned to face each other, and I felt unsure of my voice. Peeta ran his hand along my face, rubbing my chin with his thumb before placing a kiss to my forehead.

"Don't worry; I won't leave your side." He whispered before pulling me to the stairs.

I followed him up into our room and went over to all the dresses I had from the Victory Tour. I picked out several dresses and shoved them into the bag of my things I hadn't had a chance to unpack yet. We barely had time to get adjusted to the idea of being together, how was I supposed to go talk to a crowd about our marriage? Glancing over my shoulder I noticed Peeta was already packed and sitting on the edge of the bed staring at me. He smiled kindly at me as our eyes met, and I came to rest in the space beside him on the bed.

Just the warmth of his body on my skin was an enormous comfort, making me turn to him and wrap my arms around his neck. He rubbed his nose against mine before kissing me hard, making something stir in my stomach. Our bodies fell back against the bed as he rolled on top of me, deepening the kiss and slipping his tongue into my mouth. One hand came to hold my face as the other traveled down my neck to rest on my chest. As my tongue rubbed against his I felt his fingers play with the strap of my tank top before sliding down to my breast. His hand spread to cover it, cupping it before feeling its weight in his palm. I pulled my face back to watch him, amused at the expression on his face as he glanced back up at me sheepishly as he squeezed my breast in his large hand.

A mockingjay in the tree right out the window chirped sharply, warning us that something was coming and we pulled away from each other.

"Probably should hurry to get our things ready." Peeta said, straightening himself out a safe distance from me.

We were quick with grabbing a few extra things before heading out onto the street. The walk to the train station was quiet, my nerves trying to get the best of me. There seemed to be no one on the streets anywhere to be seen as we went through town. Our clasped hands stayed perfectly still between our bodies as we arrived, and I relaxed slightly at the sight of Effie. She was wearing a ridiculously poufy hounds tooth dress with a pistachio green wig. She gave us a big grin as she waved us forward with a gloved hand and we followed her onto the train.

It appeared to be the same train that took us to the capitol for the games, and a bitter taste formed in the back of my mouth.

"Welcome back!" Effie said, hugging both of us before shuffling in her impossibly high heels into the lounge car.

As soon as the door shut behind us the train began to move, speeding out of the district and I realized I hadn't even had a chance to say goodbye to my mother or Prim, to explain where we were going. There was a large spread of food set out on a buffet along the windows of the train car and I helped myself to a heaping plate of everything in sight. Peeta joined me at the table and we were quiet as we dug into our food. Effie was looking over a list in her hand; she excused herself and walked out to the car behind us. I stared out the window as I ate, watching the mountains pass by in a blur of green and hints of blue sky.

"What are you thinking?" Peeta asked, rubbing my knuckles with a finger.

"Just remembering how it felt last time we were leaving district 12 on this train, all the fears and emotions I had. I didn't know you yet." His face softens at my words.

"I know what you mean. I was scared out of my mind and at the same time I was most worried about thinking up ways to talk to you."

I leaned over and kissed him on the lips softly, my fingers curling in his hair. He stood up; keeping my lips attached to his as he swiped all the food out of the way and pushed me up onto the table. His hand came to my knee and spread my legs open and came to stand between them. I wrapped my legs around his torso, pulling him against me as he kissed my neck up to behind my ear. It sent a shiver up and down my body and I let out a moan as he sucked on the sensitive skin behind my ear.

"Do that again." I breathed into his ear, feeling goosebumps spread across his arms.

He sucked on my neck, bringing another moan from my lips when he grazed his teeth against my skin.

Suddenly the entire train shook as a great boom filled the air. Smoke filled the room as the shaking became more pronounced, and I clung to Peeta's arms. A woman's scream came through the smoke as another loud crash sounded. We fell to the ground as the entire train car flipped onto its side, and we could feel that the train was sliding down the side of the mountain we had been passing over. The screaming continued, and I felt strangely disconnected as I watched the windows shatter and all the food on the buffet spill across the expensive rugs covering the floor.

Peeta's strong arms held me tight against him, my face pressed against the solid muscle of his chest as we continued to fall. I looked up into his eyes, which were wide with fear and he looked right back into mine.

"I love you." He said, somehow bringing me even closer to him than I already was.

My heart swelled, somehow despite the chaos around us, it was still just me and Peeta. I couldn't reach his lips but I kissed his chest. Just as suddenly as the crash began it ended, the train making an eerie creaking as it came to a stop in a valley. I leapt to my feet and ran to the window that had had broken open and tentatively climbed out. Peeta was right behind me and we peered at our surroundings. The sounds of bombs going off could be heard echoing around the mountains in the distance. About 200 feet away lay another car from the train, and I could see many of the cars scattered across the valley.

No one else appeared from the cars as we stood in shock, taking in the wreckage. A ringing in my ear distracted me from noticing the hover craft appear above me until a ladder dropped down for us. When I looked up I was surprised to see Haymitch's face staring back at us.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

As the hovercraft lowered closer to us, I noticed the expression on Haymitch's face change dramatically. Once he was within shouting range he called down to us.

"Where's Effie?"

When both Peeta and I shook our heads at him, he motioned for the pilot to land in front of us. I blocked my eyes from the strong gust of wind that came from the hovercraft, stepping back so that I was partially shielded by Peeta's large frame. The ship came to hover about a foot off the ground, not truly landing but close enough for us to walk up to Haymitch. He was glaring out at us with a rage I hadn't yet seen from him.

"I'll ask this again, Where. Is. Effie?"

"She was in the car behind us when the bombs started." Peeta began before Haymitch interrupted.

"She was where? I told her to stay with you two, I told her to keep an eye on you no matter what." He ran a hand shakily through his hair before balling his fingers into a fist.

I turned around to stare at the mountain that our train car had fallen down. There were clear tracks in the earth where each car had slid down, and I followed them with my eyes to spot the car that had been behind ours. It had landed about 200 feet from us, and I couldn't see any motion from where I stood.

"I'll go find her." I said, marching across the field before I got any response.

"Go with her!" Haymitch shouted to Peeta as he ran to catch up to me.

As we neared the train car I felt my throat tighten. The sound of a woman screaming flashed through my mind, the memory of what had just happened to us filling my head. No one else had come out of the train aside from Peeta and myself. No one. This car looked in similar condition than our own, mostly intact aside from all the scratches and broken windows. There was a window close to us that had been crushed and left an opening large enough for us to crawl through without catching on anything. I crawled in first, Peeta right behind me, and his hand came out and rubbed against the back pocket of my shorts.

"Really, now?" I laughed, turning around to see him giving me a guilty smile.

"It was right there in front of me, hard not to."

Once we were both fully inside the train car I stood up fully, assessing the area. Something rustled from the far right side and I delicately headed over, avoiding the furniture knocked over across the floor. A giant wooden hutch had fallen on top of a sofa, and I could see a delicately polished hand from beneath the sofa.

"Give me a hand over here." I said, trying to pull the hutch up before realizing it was too heavy.

Peeta rushed over, and sunk down so that his shoulder was wedged below the wooden hutch. Slowly he pushed with both his shoulder and his arms as he came back to standing, holding the weight of the hutch up. I stood there staring at him a moment, shocked by his strength before I saw the effort written across his face. The hand moved, and a soft groan came from beneath the sofa.

"Effie, can you move?" I asked as I touched her hand, and she squeezed my fingers in response.

"Grab her." Peeta said through gritted teeth, sweat building on his brow.

My hands found strength from some reserve in me as I shoved the couch up and away from her body. Effie lay in a crumpled heap on the floor, blood gushing from a cut on her forehead. I couldn't see any other wounds on her however so before I had a chance to come up with another plan I grabbed her arms and gave them a hard tug. The motion freed her from under the sofa and sent both of us flying backwards. Immediately Peeta set the hutch back down, shaking out his shoulders and winding his arms around to loosen them back out.

Effie slowly opened her eyes, the deep green orbs staring up at me in confusion for a moment before recognizing me. She reached her hand out and grabbed mine tightly in hers, pulling me down to her.

"We're going to get you out of here." I looked over at Peeta, who nodded emphatically.

He bent down to scoop her up in his arms, and despite the seriousness of the moment I couldn't help but appreciate the way his biceps bulged out as he carried her. Effie looked so small and broken, bleeding in Peeta's arms, her wig askew and her make up running down her face to her dress.

The hovercraft had moved so that it was waiting right outside the train car, I could see Haymitch crouching as close to the opening as possible as we approached. Peeta held onto the ladder with one hand and I climbed on after them, watching the ground grow smaller as we were pulled up into the ship. The minute we were in Haymitch grabbed Effie from Peeta's arms and set her on a couch. She raised her head, her hand finding his cheek and smiling.

"Damnit Effie, what part of 'stay with them' did you not understand?" Though his tone was cold, his eyes showed how concerned he truly was.

Effie let out a tiny laugh, making him frown. Peeta came to stand beside me, his arms wrapping around my shoulders. I looked up at him, leaning back against his frame. I had so many questions about what had just happened, but now just didn't seem the time. A medic was inspecting the wound on Effie's head while Haymitch hovered near her; I felt that if I asked him anything at this moment he would jump down my throat for interrupting.

We sat on the couch across from them and I watched the mountains as we sped away. After her head was bandaged Effie seemed to be fine, mostly upset with herself for leaving us. Peeta brought his hand up to my hair, smoothing it back as he planted a kiss to the top of my head. I turned to look at him, rubbing his upper arms and I felt them shiver beneath my fingers.

"You ok?" I asked.

"Yeah, I think so. How are you doing?" He held me at arm's length, looking me over for injuries.

"I'm fine." I said quickly, giving him a kiss.

Haymitch moved over to the couch across from us, leaning on his knees with his hands clasped together.

"I'm sure by now you have an idea of what's going on." He said, and both of us nodded slowly.

"We had been working for quite a while on an escape plan to get both of you out of grasp of the Capitol. They were going to put both of you into the Quarter Quell, and obviously we couldn't allow that. When they bumped up your interview date we knew we had to act immediately to get you out."

"Who is 'we'? Where are we headed?" I tightened my hold on Peeta's hand.

"District 13. They contacted me during the Games; right after you decorated Rue with the flowers and thanked District 11. They want to make you the face of the rebellion. Both of you actually, since I sold you two as a set." He gave us a tiny smirk as he said the last part.

"Sold us, what like dogs?"

"Slow down, that's not at all what I meant. You are not as likeable as you think, it took some convincing on my part to get them to agree to take both of you and train you for the war. If it weren't for me, you'd be about to get thrown into another death match, and they'd make sure this time you wouldn't be the victors."

I let his words run through my mind a few times. The rumors of District 13 were apparently true. We were supposed to be killed in the Capitol. Haymitch saved us. I owed Haymitch so much. I could feel my face pulling into a frown as I realized this, not wanting to owe anyone anything more. The emotions going through Peeta were spelled clearly across his face as well, but he seemed to be coming to different conclusions.

"What do they want from us exactly?" Peeta asked.

"They plan on training you with the other soldiers; most of the other districts have already begun rebelling. District 11 and 10 have overpowered the Peacekeepers and have been able to gain control. District 4 is almost there. They'll go over the entire plan with you I'm sure once we arrive."

I looked back out the window and was shocked to see that instead of mountains there was a great body of water spreading out to the horizon. We appeared to be flying over rocky cliffs, the ruins of cities below us covering the land. It took no time before we were pulling over the familiar ruins of 13, I could see the Justice Building where they reused the same smoking footage in the Capitol. The ship suddenly dipped down into a tunnel that opened up, and the strange yellow light of the tunnel blinked through the windows. Peeta and I held onto each other, our hands tightly together as we tried to brace ourselves for whatever was about to come our way.

When we were finally parked guards came and led us through a large metal door into a sterile hallway. It all looked so strange; everything seemed to be painted the same horrible shade of grey from floor to ceiling. Being underground made my chest feel tight and my head light, the face of my father sprung to mind immediately. Peeta looked over at me as we walked and I tried to smile back at him but when my mouth refused I wrapped myself around his arm instead and leaned against him for strength.

They brought us into a large conference room a woman rose to greet us, her gray hair falling around her shoulders in an unappealing fashion. Her light grey eyes stare me down as I came up to shake her hand, and when she introduced herself as President Coin something in my gut told me to not trust her.

She quickly restated what Haymitch had told us on the plane, the entire time not blinking as she looked right through me. Our families had been rushed out of the district after we had gotten on the train, and as soon as she was done talking to us I asked to see them. She dismissed us and I rushed to the hall.

"Where do people live down here?" Peeta asked as we walked down the hall.

"We will show you where your families have been housed; they were given quarters close to your own." The guard in front stated.

Large metal doors slid open to reveal a long hallway of doors from end to end. Voices could be heard coming through the doors as we passed by each one, watching the numbers rise. As we neared the end of the hall a door swung open and Prim flew out from it and leapt into my arms. Her body shook in my arms and I just held her there for a long time, not realizing I had been so scared until then. My mother was hovering in the doorway watching us, and I could see Gale waiting behind her with his siblings. Behind me I could hear Peeta talking loudly to someone, and I set Prim back down to see what was going on when I realized he sounded upset.

A guard was standing with his arms crossed in front of him as Peeta and Haymitch stared each other down. Peeta turned away angrily and came to stand beside me.

"My family refused to come. They were asked to pack up and come here and they said no." He said, shaking his head in disbelief.

I grabbed for his hand, but he just let his hand sit inside mine limply. I could see the worry on his face, and I was at a loss as to what I could do to comfort him. I'd never been good at comforting other people; I only knew how to take care of them.

"Should we show you to your quarters?" The guard asked, motioning us forward.

Despite the bad news Peeta had just received, he perked up as we walked into our new apartment. It wasn't large, just a main living room and bedroom but at least it wasn't all grey. I heard the door click softly behind us as it was shut by the guards, leaving us in our new home.

A/N: Sorry that this chapter was a little short, it's the end of the semester so I've had a million projects this week and last. I apologize for the lack of romance in this chapter as well; I promise the next chapter will be filled with it! Please review to let me know what you think and just so I know people are reading this!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I do have to admit, when I started writing this I planned on it just being simply them falling in love, but the more I ranted with my sister about Mockingjay the more I couldn't ignore the fact that even if they had just this sweet moment of love and being together it would eventually have to be disrupted because the Capitol would still be in control. That's why my story changed directions slightly, though this will still be primarily their love story. Anyway, thanks again for all of you for being so amazing with your reviews, they mean so much and your reactions and input do have a big impact on this story as I write it.

Chapter 10

My eyes wandered over the living room of our new home. So much had happened in such little time, my legs felt like they couldn't stand another minute. I settled down onto a loveseat nearby, pulling Peeta down to sit next to me. He was chewing on his lip, his brow furrowed, and it hurt me to see him so upset. I reached out and rubbed the back of his head with my fingers, smiling a little as his eyes closed and his face relaxed as I messaged his scalp. We sat in silence for quite a while as he leaned into my touch.

"Why do they have to be so stubborn?" He asked, breaking the silence. "My dad and brothers wanted to come, but my mother bullied them into staying with her. She always does this." He stopped for a minute, staring down at his hands as he gathered himself. "She thought the bakery needed to be protected… I don't understand how anyone could spend their entire life at the Capitol's mercy and still be loyal to them. Apparently most of the people in town stayed, even though they were given the chance to escape."

"Maybe she's scared to leave. I don't know if I would have said yes right away if we had been asked to go to some district that we all thought was destroyed. Your family worked hard to keep that bakery successful; it must have been a hard decision." I suggested, trying to draw his eyes to mine.

"No, it isn't a hard decision. Look at your family, your mom and sister probably came immediately. All the people from the Seam did." He glared down at the floor before letting out a sigh and leaning back against the loveseat.

"You are all that I have now." Peeta stated, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye.

I wanted to argue, to tell him that it wasn't true, but seeing him sitting there so upset and hurt I couldn't. Instead I reached up for his face, holding it in my hands and staring into his sad blue eyes. His eyes fluttered shut, sucking in air in short breaths, and he looked so beautiful that something ached in my heart.

His lips parted slightly as I moved one hand along the perfect curve of his jaw and down his neck to his chest. I had the sudden urge to kiss him, every last inch of skin I could see on him, but instead I gently placed a kiss below his ear on his neck. I could feel his pulse speed up under my lips as I trailed kisses down his neck before placing one softly on his lips. He let the kiss linger for only a moment, neither of us moving, before he reached out and pulled me to him.

Our lips crushed together, moving against each other faster and more frantic with each second. I found myself climbing onto Peeta's lap, straddling his lap with my legs so that I could reach his lips easier. I could feel my blood flowing quicker through my body, my heartbeat seemed to be pounding straight into my ear. He deepened the kiss, and I lost myself completely in the feeling of his lips against mine, pulling me into him.

His hands came down my back to the small of my back, rubbing in small circles with his fingertips. I broke away from his mouth to arch my back into his touch, a small noise leaving my throat. He looked up curiously at me before playing with the hem of my shirt. I froze for a moment, my eyes widening as I realized what he wanted before nodding to him.

His hands slowly peeled my shirt up, hovering at just below my chest before pulling it up and over my head, discarding it on the floor. Goosebumps formed along my skin as Peeta's eyes fell on my breasts, his tongue running along his bottom lip. His breath caught in his chest and a shaky hand came to trace the outer curve of one breast before holding its weight in the palm of his hand. I gasped as his finger grazed over my nipple, making it harden. He circled the brown around my nipple, pinching it slightly between his fingers and enjoying the gasp that slipped out of my mouth each time. My head dropped back to expose my neck fully when he let his tongue flick across my nipple, drawing it into his mouth.

"Peeta." I moaned, pushing my chest into his face.

I could feel the smile on his face against my skin. "Yes Katniss?"

I pressed my hands against his chest, leaning far enough back that I could look fully in his face. Our eyes locked, and I ran a hand through his hair to calm my nerves.

"I don't know what to do; I've never done this before." I could feel a blush creeping up my face.

"Me neither, but I think we're doing pretty well here on our own." He said, a little laugh escaping his lips as he looked at me hungrily.

Placing his hands securely beneath my ass, he stood up and carried me over to the bed. He dropped me down in the center of the mattress, my arms falling above my head as I stretched out. Peeta quickly whipped off his shirt, exposing the smooth hard muscles of his abs and chest. I let my eyes roam over his skin before coming back up to his face. He gave me a nervous smile as he brought his hands down to the button of my shorts, undoing them with a flick of his thumb. I nodded at him as he hesitantly tugged them down my hips and onto the floor. Peeta raked his eyes across my naked body, taking in every detail of me. I could see his chest moving in and out rapidly with his breathing.

"I have pictured this moment so many times in my life, but you are so much more beautiful than I could have ever imagined in my mind." He finally said, struggling to take his eyes off my body and look into my eyes.

My face flushed a deep red at his words, I could tell by the look on his face just how long he had wanted me. There was a rustling as he slipped out of his own shorts and coming to stand in front of me in all of his glory. He was already hard, standing at attention directly in front of me. The sight of his entire body without any clothes to block my view was a sight to behold. I let my eyes touch each part of him, from his broad shoulders, down his wide chest, impossibly defined abs. There was a small trail of blond hair leading down from his belly button. He followed my gaze down to his erection and a smile spread across his face.

"Like what you see?" I let out a small laugh and nodded.

The bed creaked as Peeta climbed onto the bed, hovering above me. He dipped down to give me a kiss and I slid my tongue against his and pulled it into my mouth. Our tongues moved back and forth against each other in my mouth, my pulse racing and a heat filling my body. A gasp left my lips as he slid a finger inside of me. My eyes opened wide as he pulled it out and rubbed his fingers together, my own wetness glistening before he slid two fingers back inside me. He spread the fingers out, making a scissor motion and his finger struck something on the upper wall that sent a pleasant shiver through my body.

Slowly he slid the fingers in fully before pulling them out. I let out a whimper, scooting closer as I placed his hand back at my opening. His mouth quirked into a smile at the gesture, looking right into my eyes, and slid his fingers back inside me again. He built up a rhythm, sliding in and out of me, and the heat in my body rose quickly. There was an ache inside of me that Peeta's fingers weren't satisfying, I knew that my body wanted more. One of his fingers curled against the top wall, making a motion as if he was calling me forward. My body arched upward, my head falling backward as a strong wave of pleasure flooded through me.

"Do that again." I managed to say in between breaths.

He curled his finger again, and I shut my eyes tight as the feeling flooded my senses again. I reached out and braced myself by grabbing Peeta's biceps and I could feel the muscles flex beneath my fingers. I moaned as he did it again, sliding another finger into me at the same time. As I grew accustomed to the feeling as he stretched his fingers out inside of me, and I knew that I needed more than this. I pulled his face down to mine for a long kiss, pulling his lip into my mouth and sucking on it.

"I want you." My fingers spread through his hair as I kissed him again.

"Are you sure?" He asked, though I could feel precum dripping on my leg so I knew how much he wanted me too. When I reached out a hand and stroked him, his whole body quivered.

"I'm sure."

He pulled his fingers out, leaving me staring up at him. He ran his hand up my stomach, across my chest and up to my face, rubbing my cheek. After a few deep breaths he moved closer, and I felt the head bump against me, making my eyes close in anticipation. He kissed me deeply as he very slowly slid inside of me, inch by inch. I grabbed his shoulders and held him still as I adjusted to the surprising feeling of being completely filled, and I could hear his ragged breath in my ear.

When I opened my eyes I found his deep blue ones staring so intently at me I became overwhelmed. There was so much love in those eyes, so much emotion swirling in them. I shifted below him, readjusting my hips slightly and the motion caused Peeta to shut his eyes tight and let out a low growl. Enjoying the sound he made, I tested out moving my hips again; rocking them up against him which made him swallow hard before his mouth fell open and he stared intensely at me. He remained still for only a moment before losing control and thrusting into me.

"Katniss… you feel…incredible." He moaned, eyes falling closed.

His thrusts became faster, more erratic, and I tried to pick up his rhythm. Suddenly his body froze, and with a shudder he collapsed against me. I looked down at his head, golden curls contrasting against my brown skin, and let out a sigh of frustration. He looked up, a deeply embarrassed expression on his face.

"I'm so sorry. You just felt so amazing; I had no idea you would feel like that." His face burned red.

I gave him a kiss, wrapping my arms around his limp body and just breathing in his smell.

"It's alright, really it is. We have plenty of time to get it right." His head popped up at my words, and there was a glint in his eye.

He let out a long sigh, shaking out his entire body as he rolled onto his side next to me and lay down. His arms wrapped around my body, bringing me to him again, and let out a long sigh.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: This chapter in my mind is righting a few wrongs from the book. It won't stick much to what happens in Mockingjay so I'm just preparing you for that now. I apologize that it's short; I was injured in a very bad car accident on Friday. Please Please review, I keep all of your words and suggestions and comments in mind as I write and it lets me know your reaction to the story.

Chapter 11

A pounding on the door woke me and I sat straight up, staring around the room in confusion. Peeta woke up beside me and I let out a sigh as the blanket slid off his bare chest. He looked over at me, eyes half lidded and he gave me a smile that could melt icebergs.

"Hey! How are you feeling?" He asked as he gathered me into his arms.

Ignoring the door I kissed him gently, smiling against his lips as he tightened his hold on my body.

"I feel better than I have in a long time." I said honestly, stretching out slightly as the pounding at the door got louder.

"We should probably put some clothes on and get that." Peeta said through a laugh.

Our clothes lay strewn on the floor where we'd left them but I chose to wrap a robe around my shoulders instead and rushed to the door. As I pulled it open I was shocked to see Gale standing there, hand raised to knock again on the door. He raised his eyebrows at my appearance; I must have looked so disheveled with my bedhead and just a robe as cover. I gave a small smile as I held the door partially open, allowing him to only see my face and shoulder.

"Oh, sorry to interrupt." He cleared his throat before continuing. "They keep a strict schedule here and I figured I'd show you how it works and where everything is."

"That would be great, just let me get ready quick."

It felt rude to close the door on him after his offer to show me around, but there wasn't really any place in our apartment for him to sit while Peeta and I rushed to get dressed. As soon as we were dressed I let Gale into the room and he explained that we each had a tattooed schedule for the day, which was broken down by activity each hour.

The idea of having my time be so completely out of my hands made me panic for a moment. What were we doing here? They had us scheduled for training to be soldiers; here we were given the chance to seek revenge on the Capitol for all it had done to us. Why did I feel strange about all of this?

Gale was excited to be here, I could tell by the way he lit up when talking about District 13. He had apparently finally found a place that played to his strengths, and they acknowledged those strengths too. He had already found a niche and fit in with the other soldiers. My sister and mom had been put to work immediately as nurses and seemed happier than I'd seen them in a long time. The people of 12 all seemed to be adjusting better than I was.

We were rushed through our first days as citizens of the district. If I were asked to sum up my life here in one word it would be "grey". Everyone and everything appeared grey to me, the clothes, the walls, the food, none of it seemed right. We were corralled in like farm animals, led from one area to another according to the clock. Back in 12 I had lived my life purely on instinct and based off of what I needed to do for my family, here I didn't know my place at all.

The air here never felt like it filled my lungs, it left me gasping each time I breathed in. I missed the trees, the way they moved in the hot breeze at the base of the mountains. Until it was taken away I had no idea how much I missed the sound of birds singing, what their songs meant to me. This place was cold and foreign and sterile, I couldn't feel the presence of my father in this place and that scared me.

The only comfort I found was the moments I had with Peeta. Holding his hand as we ate our perfectly rationed meals in the crowded dining hall. Taking a breath from shooting to find my eyes meeting his across the room as we trained. I'd catch him watching me as I was measured for a special suit they were designing just for me, Cinna having been flown in safely from the Capitol before the bombings began.

This new life at District 13 was so different from anything I'd ever known before that it was wearing on me. They worked us to the bone, every second of our life plotted out for their plans, only given the exact amount of bland nutrition needed to get by, so by the time Peeta and I were allowed to go home at night we could barely do more than fall onto the bed and hold each other before we fell asleep. We stole seconds from the district, kissing frantically in supply closets in between training sessions, our hands roaming the other's body before footsteps in the hall would interrupt us, tear us away from each other. Other than our first night here Peeta and I hadn't had a chance to act on our feelings for each other and I was getting frustrated.

Each day as we ate our tasteless breakfast and watched news clips of the successes of the other districts I would lean on Peeta, try and place my body as close as physically possible to his just to remind myself that we were both here together. They often showed clips of some boy, a victor from a past hunger game seemed to be leading the rebellion out in district 4. I recognized him from seeing past games, a tall boy with glowing golden skin and bronze hair. His green eyes seemed to pore into my soul each time the camera would zoom in on him, trident raised in triumph in front of the burning ruins of another battlefield.

It was a small comfort to realize that we weren't alone in this, there were many more people out there fighting the same fight that we were against the Capitol. Day after day we were brought into a meeting room where we had to sit and listen to Coin plot the rebellion without actually allowing us to do anything. Mostly I spent these meetings watching Peeta draw in his notebook next to me, turning the edges of memo pages into beautiful landscapes and designs. I'd rub his forearms as we sat together; I loved the way the little hairs on his arm would stand on end in a trail where I had touched. When no one was looking he'd steal a kiss but I knew that we both wanted so much more than that.

I knew right away something was different about this day when I looked at my schedule. Right at the top was a meeting with Haymitch and Coin, followed by a fitting with Cinna. As Peeta shuffled around sleepily behind me I wondered if I would finally get to do something today. He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, giving my neck a kiss. I spun around so that I was facing him, his arms still around my shoulders, and kissed his lips.

"I hate it here." I said, tugging on the hair at the base of his neck.

"I know. Every day I watch you drift through here more and more lost. You deserve real earth beneath your feet. Don't worry; they can't win an uprising by keeping us all underground forever."

I looked into his eyes, hoping that his words were true. "I feel like I'm in a cage here, a song bird."

His face came so close to mine that our noses bumped, he rubbed the tip of his nose against mine comfortingly. My eyes fell open to see him looking intensely at me.

"I'd set you free if I could. I'd do anything to make you happy." His voice was so low I could barely hear it.

"No, I don't want to be free from you. Don't ever leave. Stay with me." I gripped his arms.

"Always." He whispered.

My heart swelled in my chest at his words. I wasn't in this alone; the thought was just so comforting in a way I hadn't experienced before.

An alarm in the hall sounded, alerting any stragglers that breakfast was being served so we pulled apart from each other with a peck of a kiss.

We ran down the halls to the cafeteria, and wolfed down our tasteless breakfast. We caught up with Gale as we rushed to the conference room. He glanced at my flushed face as I caught my breath and frowned, but I didn't care if he was misinterpreting my behavior right now. Haymitch was already seated at the table with all the other officials, Coin seated at the head of the table in front of a large screen, and he tilted his head at the seats open across from him. As soon as we sat down Coin stood up.

"We're going to be changing our strategy slightly. Today you will be joining a group of soldiers over to District 2 and filming some scenes of you helping fight the rebellion." She paused to watch my expression before continuing. "Don't worry; it will all be staged so there's no danger. It's the last district still under the power of the Capitol; they will fall easily with all of the rebels fighting against them. The other districts have been doing a great job with overtaking the Peacekeepers and we need a symbol to really unify the rebellion. Put a face on it if you will."

I turned to Haymitch and he nodded at me. "You mean me?"

"Yes, you and Peeta have become a sort of mascot for this uprising. That's why we've been working on special suits for you, when we film scenes to show the districts how hard we are fighting you will be wearing them."

"So this is all for show? We're deceiving everyone into thinking we've been fighting this whole time?" I tried to keep my voice level despite the anger growing inside of me.

"You are helping the fight by staying alive, safe and sound here." She stood up, collecting her things.

"This meeting is over, please go to down to costuming for the final fitting of your costumes. Gale, we have something special for you as well." She motioned for everyone to get up and stormed out of the room.

We followed Haymitch down a series of hallways until he stopped outside a large training room. A small man was inside talking to Cinna, and he gave each of us a small smile as we entered the room. Cinna placed a hand on my shoulder as I came to stand beside him and greeted all of us.

"This is Beetee, he is from District 3. He's been working with me on your weapons. This one is yours" He said, placing a bow in my arms.

Beetee quickly explained the different arrows to me, whispering that they were not just for decoration, before moving over to Gale and Peeta and showing them their weapons. Gale had a bow similar to mine while Peeta was giving a special spear. While they tested them out I walked over to the dressing area with Cinna. He brought out the suit I was to wear when we filmed; it fit me like a glove.

After we had all changed into our new suits and had our weapons with us Haymitch led us back down the hall. We took an elevator that went sideways and then up at a diagonal to a hovercraft that was waiting for us. There were several other soldiers in the helicopter and a camera crew, and I saw Peeta force his way to the free seat beside me so that Gale had to sit in the lone chair off to the side.

Peeta grabbed my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as we took off, and just the warmth of his body beside mine was a huge comfort. My eyes drooped closed, and when I blinked them back open again I could tell from the light in the sky that a lot of time had passed while I slept. My head had fallen onto Peeta's shoulder, and he had his arm tight around my waist, his fingers running absentmindedly against the curves of my body. I stretched out, making sure to rub against him as I did so, and sat up with a yawn.

"Perfect timing." Haymitch said to me, gesturing to the mountains coming into view out the window.

I recognized these mountains, so different than my warm green Appalachia. These rose high and jagged into the pale blue sky like cold stone daggers, snow covering their tips. I remembered District 2 from the Victory Tour, the stone buildings carved from the mountains themselves. The mix of respect and hostility from the people there who came to see us speak. The strong handshake of Cato's father as he looked me in the eyes and congratulated me on the Games. There was so much said in that interaction without the words actually being said.

Looking out at that city now made my stomach drop; I watched it grow larger as we landed near a large camp. The Victor boy that I'd seen in so many battle clips was jogging out to meet us. He flashed a smile at us as we approached and I could see why so many people loved him.

"Glad you guys could finally join us. I'm Finnick, though I'm sure you already know this." He said, his sea foam eyes sparkling in the sun.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: I have really enjoyed this story, getting to know you through the reviews you leave me really inspired me and kept me writing. It was definitely wonderful reading your thoughts on my writing since it had been so long since I had written anything. Unfortunately I was seriously injured in the car accident last week so I really appreciate all of you who expressed concerns for me! I hope you enjoy this last chapter of the story, and please review to let me know your thoughts on it!

I've started working on another AU story called The One Who Hung the Moon in which Katniss is a native girl living on a reservation and Peeta is the boy from town who loves her from afar so please check that out if you liked this story!

We followed him through the camp to a ring of tents on the far edge up against a mountain base. There were several tents already set up for us, and Peeta rushed over to the tent farthest away and claimed it as ours by throwing his stuff inside. I felt eyes on me and turned around to see Finnick staring at me. He gave me a wink before turning to shake hands with Gale. I sat down at one of the camp chairs that were set up around a fire, unsure what exactly we were all doing here. It looked more like a camping trip than an army ready to attack a district.

Peeta walked over to Finnick and the two of them hit it off right away, so I settled onto one of the four logs circling a small fire. Gale came and sat beside me, stretching his long legs out in front of him and letting out a sigh. I turned to face him and he raised his eyebrows at me, not quite smiling before looking at the fire. We sat quietly side by side just watching the fire and observing everyone around us, I knew he was getting himself adjusted to our surroundings the way we would when we'd hunt in unfamiliar sections of the forest.

Finnick let out a loud laugh, slapping Peeta's shoulder as they both grinned widely. Gale's head snapped up and he glared over at them.

"Don't you own any shirts?" He asked.

I looked over and let myself get a good look at Finnick for the first time. He had a swimmer's build, strong wide shoulders and chest. Freckles ran across the bridge of his nose and he winked at me when he caught me eyeing him up.

"Don't have much use for them right now do I?" He said, resting his arms against the back of his seat so that I had a full view of him.

Gale frowned and kicked a log into the fire. Peeta laughed but then followed my gaze and frowned slightly as well.

"What exactly do they plan to have us do here?" Peeta asked.

"You are all just pretty faces, they won't expect much from us other than to film us triumphantly walking in front of the ruins after the real soldiers do all the work for us. At least that's what they've had me do all this time." He looked over our suits as he talked.

"So we're not even real soldiers?" Gale asked, standing up.

Before anyone could answer him, he stormed off toward the group of officials that Haymitch was talking to. I looked over at Peeta and Finnick who both looked amused.

"We do have watch schedules, two or three people stay up each night to watch out for an attack while everyone else gets to sleep. You're both in luck, you showed up on my night to keep watch and I'm volunteering you two to stay up with me."

We gathered some food and began to cook dinner. Peeta surprised me by showing us how to bake bread on the open fire while I made a small pot of stew. It was nice having the choice to eat something other than the carefully portioned food of District 13. It grew dark early at the camp, the cold mountains stealing the light from the sun and casting long shadows upon us as the sky turned a brilliant pink. Finnick stared off into the sky, seemingly miles away from where we were. I knew he was from District 4 but I didn't know much more than that aside from his reputation as a lady's man. I could certainly see why they all liked him so much; he was quite beautiful up close.

"You're from the mountains so this can't feel as strange to you as it is to me." He said quietly when he noticed me watching him.

"No, this place is a lot different from home. Our mountains don't look much like this." Peeta said, looking at the harsh landscape surrounding us.

"Well, it couldn't be much more opposite from my home. I hate any place I can't see the ocean from. Seeing palm trees touch the sky, sand beneath my feet, the sound of the waves against the shore. That's what I want to wake up to see each day of my life. Not this." Finnick sighed.

"I thought you spent most of your time in the Capitol."

"No, I spend a great deal of time there, but every chance I get I return home." He glanced around the camp carefully before continuing. "I have something very precious to me that I need to check up on back home."

"Something? Or someone?" Peeta asked, making sure to keep his voice low as a group of soldiers walked past.

Finnick considered us a moment, several expressions crossing his face. He leaned in close to us, his voice low and his face grave.

"Yes, you're right, it is a someone. My girl. She waits for me at the water. It's a big part of why we need to win this war. I want to be free to spend my life with her alone, free from the grasp of the Capitol."

We all sat in silence after his words. The sun had long since gone down, the black sky now filled with stars and still Gale hadn't come back. I could see dozens of little fires along the base of the mountain, laughter and voices of the other camps floating through the still night air. I let this fill my mind and just sat there for what felt like hours, taking everything in as Peeta and Finnick talked.

One by one soldiers came back and went to their tents, the fires dying down as everyone but those of us keeping watch went to sleep. I leaned against Peeta's shoulder, stealing heat from his body which felt nice against my cheek. He bent down and kissed the top of my head as he talked. I squeezed his knee before slowly rubbing my hand up and down his thigh. It was dark enough even with the firelight that I knew Finnick couldn't see anything other than our faces. As my hand slowly moved up near his hips Peeta adjusted in his seat, causing my hand to glide over the growing bulge in his pants. His eyes closed as I pressed my hand down, before snapping back open and flying over to Finnick and then to me.

A large piece of wood cracked from inside the fire, drawing my attention, and I slowly stood up and stretched.

'I'm going to gather some extra wood for the fire."

Peeta nodded and stood up as well. "I'll come with you; we can carry more back that way."

Finnick nodded at both of us, a hint of a smirk on his lips. "Take your time."

I raised an eyebrow at him but headed off toward a group of bushes instead of responding. As soon as we were safely away from the camp Peeta pounced on me, picking me up in his arms and pulling my lips into a fierce kiss. I wrapped my legs around his waist, returning his kiss eagerly. I could feel him growing harder against me, and as his lips found my neck I let out a moan before I could stop myself.

Peeta grinned up at me, sucking on my collarbone and causing me to moan again. He lay me down gently on the ground and took no time pulling his shirt off. I peeled mine off as well, and feeling emboldened by the darkness, freed myself of my suit entirely. The sky above us was so filled with stars that for a moment I just gazed up at Peeta surrounded by them, losing myself in the view as he took his suit off and stood before me completely naked.

Peeta stared back down at me, an expression of love on his face as he lay down on his side next to me. His hands brought my face to his, his tongue tracing my bottom lip before forcing its way into my mouth. I climbed on top of Peeta, resting my hands on his shoulders as I leaned down and deepened the kiss. He grabbed my waist, moving me down so that our hips were aligned. He was so hard he came up right between my legs, and I moved against him, feeling him slide between my lips. Peeta's head fell back into the grass; eyes closed as he let out a groan and tightened his grip on me. I moved again, loving the feeling of the head rubbing against me over and over again.

Peeta opened his eyes, watching me, and raised a hand up to hold my breasts in his large hands. A bead of precum slid out of the tip of the head, and I could see in the starlight a flush growing across Peeta's face and chest. A fire was building deep inside me, and I loved the way Peeta looked below me, so filled with want.

I very carefully sat up, wrapping my hand around him and then very slowly lowering myself onto him. Peeta sucked in a breath as I inched my way down, and when he completely filled me I leaned over and gave a tiny peck to his forehead. He grabbed my head and pulled me down against him, kissing me so strongly my head became dizzy. We gazed at each other for a moment before his hips bucked up, making me bounce up with the motion. The sensation filled my body with a pleasant fuzziness that ran straight to my toes, and I curled them into the grass. As he did it again I let my head fall back, my long hair tickling his thighs.

I lifted myself up, building a rhythm quickly. Our breathing was even in unison as I rode him, his fingernails digging deeply into my skin and leaving trails down my back. I couldn't help but let out a long moan as he found my neck with his lips, biting down on my skin and leaving a mark. His thrusts up into me became harder, more forceful, and I could feel my entire body filling with a strong sensation. He brought his hand down and rubbed me with each thrust, and suddenly something burst inside of me and I saw white as my entire body was filled with pleasure. As I came down from the feeling I could hear Peeta call out my name, pulling me close to him and kissing my face over and over again.

We lay together breathing heavily, Peeta still buried inside of me, for what seemed like ages.

"I love you Katniss." He said, breaking the pleasant silence.

I looked down into his eyes, and became overwhelmed with the amount of love that was reflecting in his eyes. The realization that we were taking down the Capitol, that we could potentially live in a world free from the terror of the Games, a life where all I'd have to be was myself and spend my life loving my family rushed over me. A life where I could be a wife and mother and not worry. This boy beneath me was the only one I'd ever been able to contemplate such a life with, and the only person I'd ever want to.

"I love you too Peeta."

The biggest smile I had ever seen spread across his face, and a tear snuck from his eye at my words. He gathered me so close in his arms we were practically one person, and I noticed his body was trembling.

"We're going to win this thing you know, the rebellion. I can't wait to spend my life loving you." He whispered.

I stared at him before nodding, peppering his face with kisses. "There's nothing else I'd rather do than spend my life with you."

Footsteps crunched on the ground near the edge of the bushes, and we pulled apart, getting dressed quicker than I thought possible. We jumped up, grabbing some branches from the ground and rushed back to the fire. Finnick grinned toothily at both of us as we arrived, letting out a little chuckle as I sat down and placed a branch on the fire.

The rest of the night went by quickly, Gale and another soldier came just before dawn to take over watch for us. In the morning we were woken with the news that the rebels had successfully broken through District 2's final defenses and that they had surrendered to us, offering to help fight against the Capitol. We filmed some quick scenes in front of the new rebel soldiers before getting into hovercrafts headed for the Capitol. The original attack plan was to start at the outer areas of the city, but as we flew in we found no defense set up from the city against us. The streets seemed deserted as we flew over them, and I could hear several soldiers shout to the pilot to fly deeper into the city. As we got closer to the city center we began seeing soldiers on the ground, but they waved us forward with their guns, not a single one fired or made a move to attack us. We were able to land right in the front yard of the President's home, and as we climbed out a great white flag was raised up on the roof of the building.

President Snow stood waiting for us on the front steps, looking tired and defeated as he looked out at the hundreds of soldiers climbing out onto the front lawn. He quickly surrendered to us without a fight, saying that he knew as soon as District 2 joined the Rebel Army that there would be little chance to suppress such an uprising.

This war, which had been expected to take so many lives in vicious battles, had ended before it really began. Most of us stood around in shock after he surrendered, after all the time and energy that had been spent on this we had never even gotten to do anything to help. Once we took over control of the Capitol the rebels held a trial for President Snow, finding him guilty and sentencing him to the rest of his life in prison. President Coin was also tried for plotting to use the other districts to gain power and take over where President Snow had left off, and was stripped of her position in her district. There had been hostility growing among the other districts as they sent soldier after soldier out to the field for battle and saw no help from District 13 in any of the uprisings.

We were flown back to District 12, where all the other residents were moved back in and waiting to greet us. Fortunately all of the battles had taken place in Districts closer to the Capitol, our district remained intact and life was easily picked up where it had been left off after our wedding. Prim made sure to voice her disappointment in not getting to help out at all in the war, mentioning over and over again how she had planned on helping all of the injured victims of the war. One of the first things that aired on the tv after everything calmed down was the wedding of Finnick and a very sweet looking girl, both looking so happy as they said their vows right on the edge of the sea. I noticed that both were barefoot during the ceremony, and thought back on his comment about feeling the sand beneath his feet. They both looked so happy, the way she looked up at him throughout the ceremony showed how much love she held for him. He was free from the hands of the Capitol, he no longer had to charm the residents there or follow the orders and wishes of President Snow. He was free, as we all finally were.

Peeta and I readjusted to life in our home in the Victor's Village; he planted beautiful flowers for me in the yard along with a garden so that we would never have to worry about food again. True to the words we said to each other under the stars that night, we were lucky enough to get the chance to spend our lives loving each other.


End file.
